Cats Brothers is an award winning ready-to-wear luxury knitwear/street-wear label with a crafted approach to design. The label was founded in 2012 by Anna Wilkinson and Lindsay McKean, both knitwear designers, who met working together in a textile design studio in London. Based in their Hackney studio the two honed their craft and focussed on producing beautifully hand-made knitted, crocheted and embroidered streetwear which was as fun to make as it was to wear!
The label’s first collection Crazy Homies gained an immediate notoriety and reputation after being championed by Vogue UK and stocked in the prestigious boutique Browns Focus. The brand was soon written up in features by Susie Bubble, French and Italian Style pages, Vogue Italia, Grazia, Elle UK, and their garments worn by celebrities in music videos and ad campaigns while the Cats also launched a diffusion line which was to sell out in Topshop.
In 2014 Lindsay took creative direction of the brand and gaining support from international press and buyers, began to show Cats Brothers during London and Paris Fashion Weeks with the British Fashion Council and Fashion Scout.
In 2015 the label was awarded Young Designer of the Year by the Scottish Fashion Awards, Womenswear Designer of the Year by Scotland Re;Designed, was featured in the menswear category of Vogue Italia’s Vogue Talents and named as one of the “Britain’s Got Talent” designers in Grazia UK.
2016 saw Cats Brothers being invited to showcase their AW16 collection as part of The Latest Fashion Buzz at Pitti Uomo during men's collections - a showcase curated by Vogue Italia, L'Uomo Vogue and GQ Italia. Their second menswear collection for SS17 was extensively covered by international press and featured on menswear trend pages on WGSN.
Cats Brothers was acknowledged as a relevant British fashion label as they were invited to redesign the cover of Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit, by Penguin Books as part of a the 150 year anniversary of the iconic children’s book.
Cats Brothers makes clothes that are bold, directional and always with a sense of humour - the garments are as fun to wear as they are to make. Taking inspiration from anything from rap music to a blend of subcultures, textural embellishment, unique hand-craft finishes, original art and slogan prints are used to render easy-to-wear street-style garments as luxury investment pieces to be worn and treasured by young men and women alike.