SME In Brief: Dickinson Dees praised; Fashion fund-raising for Leeds shoppers;
DICKINSON Dees been praised for its “high-quality advice and unrivalled personal service” by the company behind a pioneering fashion website which launches this month.
The York office of the Newcastle-based firm played a pivotal role in setting up DesignerClothing.com for its long-standing client Visualsoft.
The site will bring together contemporary collections from hundreds of leading desginer boutiques all on website for the first time.
Retailers already looking to sell their designer ranges via DesignerClothing.com include Triads, Karen Millen, Jules B, Sarah Coggles of York, Barkers of Northallerton, MatchesFashion.com, Psyche, and Office.
DesignerClothing.com will also feature clothing and accessories from more than 1,000 brands including Dolce & Gabbana, Burberry, Vivienne Westwood, Jimmy Choo and Armani.
Dean Benson, director of Stockton-based Visualsoft, said: “I cannot praise Dickinson Dees highly enough.
“The firm played a very important part in helping to set up DesignerClothing.com by looking after the terms of business, the shareholders’ agreement, the relationship between the investors, Visualsoft and DesignerClothing.com, and the retailers’ contracts.”
Working on the project were Alistair Scott-Somers, Nigel Williams, partner at the Tees Valley office and Gill Hough, solicitor in the corporate and commercial team at the York office.
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A LEEDS-based charity and a social enterprise are branching out into fashion to help raise money for community-based projects.
St Johns Centre and CREATE will open Found by Create – new store in Leeds city cemtre selling top quality donated clothing from the high street, designer labels and one-off vintage pieces.
The idea was inspired by the recent BBC2 programme ‘Mary – Queen of Charity Shops’, which featured fashion expert Mary Portas revamping a traditional charity shop to offer better quality fashionable clothes.
FOUND aims to encourage fashion lovers and shoppers to donate unworn or ‘gently used’ quality items for resale at a fraction of the retail cost.
The shop will also feature a dress agency service so designer addicts can sell their sought after items with 50% of the money raised supporting CREATE.
St Johns Centre manager Laurie Barton Wright approached CREATE in July with the aim of supporting the local community and using a vacant retail unit.
Sarah Dunwell, chief executive of CREATE, said: “We have been keen to create a unique and fashionable outlet for some time to benefit both CREATE and the Leeds community. When St John’s approached us with the idea and offer of a prime retail location, it was the perfect partnership!”
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