There are six Esprit stores in London, including three on Oxford Street and Regent Street, and 20 others in the rest of Britain. This rapidly growing “youthful, lifestyle” group has 630 outlets worldwide, including New York. So why did many of my well-travelled, fashion-aware friends and workmates look blank when I sought their opinion of this chain? Several did recall having gone into a branch and left again quickly, uninspired by the racks of combat pants that are an Esprit trademark garment. Another saw Esprit as out of tune with the spirit of the age, associating it with “big hair and other Eighties stuff like Jordache jeans — before this year’s revamp of the denim brand”.
I will confess that my knowledge of Esprit was limited to its history from hippy origins to multinational business. It was founded in San Francisco in 1968 by Doug and Susie Tompkins, who met while hitchhiking. At their divorce in 1996, they sold the business to Hong Kong investors led by Michael Ying, who has gone from errand boy to billionaire company chairman.
Despite the mixture of ignorance, aversion and combat fatigue that appeared to surround Esprit, my colleague Rebecca and I went to the Covent Garden branch, determined to be positive. Every woman lives in the hope of discovering a new source for all the season’s trends made wearable and modestly priced. But within minutes, Rebecca summarised our impression of the merchandise thus: “Dull, cheap-looking, but actually quite expensive.”
There was an overpreponderance of black; but boring black, not the “opulence black or decadence black” with which Esprit claims to characterise its autumn collection. Casualwear is the chain’s speciality, but the most prominently displayed pieces were work clothes, in fabrics that were shiny in a nasty way, such as a pinstripe suit (jacket £49.95, trousers £39.95), a black tunic dress (£61.95) and a dark beige mac (£99.95). There are slicker versions at French Connection, Topshop or Dorothy Perkins.
Still striving to give Esprit the benefit of the doubt, I was about to take a white tailored shirt (£24.95) to the changing rooms. But I thought better of it when Rebecca told me that the curtains did not close properly; something of a defect when a cubicle faces the shop floor. She had been trying on a black skirt with volume (£39.95). It proved to be unflatteringly bulky, even on my slender colleague.
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The look of the shop was also a disappointment. Ettore Sottsass, the Italian designer celebrated for his quirky, colourful touches, has been closely associated with Esprit’s interiors. But his influence barely seemed apparent; it was just another light, bright retail space trying to look like a club — one in which we felt no desire to linger.
The links in the chain
Esprit’s sales in the year to June 2005 were HK$20.6 billion (£1.4bn); net profits: HK$3.3billion (£232 million). The shares are listed in Hong Kong and London.
Detail is retail
Layout: Tidy but bordering on the bland 5/10
Staff: Polite and smiley 7/10
Changing rooms: Substandard 4/10
Bags: Not particularly memorable 6/10
Overall score: A missable retail experience 5/10