Tu at Sainsbury's collaborates with RCA

Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s has partnered up with the Royal College of Art on a unique collaboration to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its clothing brand, Tu at Sainsbury’s. Launching this month, the anniversary collection will feature the first of four collections of ten items designed by MA students

at the RCA, whose design ideas were specially selected by Tu at Sainsbury’s in-house design team for their “individuality, creativity and wearability”.

The first collection was designed by Finnish RCA Womenswear MA student Vivi Raila, who took inspiration from stained glass windows to create a line featuring bright colours and bold shapes. The range includes ten pieces and comprises of a mix of eveningwear, staples and casual separates. Prices range from 20 to 30 pounds.

Tu at Sainsbury’s celebrates anniversary with RCA line

Anna Clarke, Sainsbury’s head of buying for womenswear, said: “Our collaboration with the RCA felt like the perfect way to celebrate a decade in style, and after ten great years we felt it was important to show our support for new talent.

“The level of work we saw from the students throughout the project was outstanding, and we hope this offers them a stepping stone for their future careers.”

Raila added: “I was truly honoured to be chosen to design a collection for Tu at Sainsbury’s. Watching my designs come to life for such a big brand was so exciting.”

The collection will be available in selected Sainsbury’s stores nationwide from October 21.

Launched in 2004, Tu at Sainsbury’s has become the 7th most popular clothing range in the UK, and it sells as many as four pieces a second. The supermarket re-launched the line with a more contemporary, look and feel in 2013, and it is success has been helped by its on-going partnership with Gok Wan, who first launched his range for the retailer in 2011.

Image: Tu at Sainsbury's by Vivi Raila