Step by step, Sunspel is steadily expanding its footprint. In Paris, the English specialist in timeless luxury has set up shop at 38, rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie, in one of fashion’s favourite districts: the Marais. The label inaugurated a 60-square-metre boutique there on October 8, marking its third opening of 2025.

Located on one of the oldest streets in the Marais, dating back to the 13th century, the space is run by a team of three. The brand, founded in 1860 by Thomas Arthur Hill, presents its classic, tightly edited wardrobe of T-shirts, polos, jumpers, coats and trousers. In the centre of the boutique, customers can explore a number of accessories and other items, including fragrances developed since 2019 in partnership with British perfumer Lyn Harris.

Harris Tweed and Sea Island cotton

From the outset, Sunspel has been known for the refinement of its materials. The brand uses Sea Island cotton, a Caribbean variety that requires abundant water and sunshine, developed in the 17th century by European settlers in the British West Indies. Sunspel T-shirts are also made from Supima cotton, sourced from a Californian farm. For other pieces, the label uses cashmere from Mongolia, spun in Switzerland.

Sunspel’s storytelling is full of such anecdotes. Pointing to a woollen coat, Nicholas Brooke, the brand’s owner since 2005, explains, as an accompanying video shows, that the piece is made from Harris Tweed, a fabric produced by the inhabitants of an archipelago in the north-west of Scotland, in their own homes.

The Riviera polo shirt was created in the 1950s for the climate of southern France by the founder’s grandson. Today, it is produced in Portugal on lace-making machines, in a factory with 25 units. The brand’s enduring classic remains the T-shirt, a line of which was created especially for Daniel Craig in “Casino Royale”. They are made in Nottingham, England, and the seamstresses stitch their first names into them — a way of highlighting these often-unseen workers.

“We want to continue investing in France”

A frequent collaborator, Sunspel has signed co-creations with Lemaire, Comme des Garçons, JW Anderson, Paul Smith and Thom Browne. In these collaborations, the brand primarily contributes its technical expertise, leaving the creative side to its partners. On its own pieces, there is no logo, and the colours are restrained, partly inspired by the paintings of British artist Richard Whadcock. At the same time, the brand continues to build on past innovations and is working on new technical projects. It recently unveiled a blend of Sea Island cotton and cashmere.

Sunspel CEO Raul Verdicchi joined the brand in 2023 after stints at AlphaTauri and the Zegna Group.

“Sunspel is unique because it combines several factors: it is an English brand, with quality products and heritage,” he explains. “It works very well for us — we even grew during Covid. Today, this boutique marks a new milestone. And in the future, we want to continue investing in France.”

For the time being, the Marais space attracts both French customers and international tourists, who account for 55% of its clientele.

A boutique in Tokyo in early 2026

Sunspel already has eight shops across London, and two more in the rest of the UK – in Edinburgh, and a stone’s throw from Liverpool, in the Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet. In the United States, the label has five standalone boutiques, in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Barbara and New York, in SoHo and on the Upper East Side. In the midst of its international expansion, Sunspel will open a boutique in Tokyo in early 2026. The brand is also present at numerous retailers such as Beams, Saks, Harrods, Selfridges & Co, La Samaritaine and Printemps, giving it a physical presence in 34 countries.

To support this expansion, the brand needs to refresh its customer base. Brooke explains: “We have 60-year-old customers who have been buying from us for 30 years, but also customers who are in their twenties. To retain a customer base, we do not focus on age, but on the quality of our products.”

He goes on to point out that in the UK, the brand enjoys a certain renown, thanks in particular to its first creative director, Northern Irish designer, Jonathan Anderson. Other channels, such as the press and cinema, also help to renew the brand’s customer base.

For 2025, Sunspel posted revenue of £36 million, or almost €41.5 million. Since 2020, the brand has achieved annual growth of 20%.