‘Elevation’ has been a huge trend at all market levels in recent years and one example of this has been mass-market retailers naming high-profile designers as their creative chiefs. That could mean Zac Posen at Gap, Clare Waight Keller at Uniqlo and now… Jonathan Saunders at & Other Stories.

The H&M Group company on Thursday named the Scottish designer to the chief creative officer role. Coming just days after the unveiling of its latest collab (with Roksanda) it underlines a doubling down on the creativity focus and original designs that have long been a feature of the chain.

The retailer said that “creativity is at the core of & Other Stories, and this appointment reinforces the brand’s dedication to continuously evolving and strengthening the creative direction”.

The CCO role is “effective in the first half of 2025” with Saunders set to “lead & Other Stories’ overall creative direction, shaping how the brand evolves and expresses itself across all touchpoints”.

The brand’s MD, Lina Söderqvist said of this: “Jonathan brings a refined blend of creativity and passion to & Other Stories and will play a key role in taking the brand into the next phase. His engagement and creative leadership, combined with a deep understanding of contemporary fashion, will be instrumental as we move forward. We look forward to working with Jonathan as we continue to evolve, and I am delighted to welcome him to us.”

And Saunders added: “I think that thoughtful, expressive design that is also accessible, is powerful in this fast-evolving industry.”

Saunders certainly has an impressive track record and despite his British background (he trained at Glasgow School of Art and Central Saint Martins in London), much of his time has been spent in New York since the middle of the last decade. 

Since 2018 he’s been running his own Saunders Studio and agency. Before that he was creative consultant at Clavin Klein for just over two years. He’s also consulted for brands such as Tiffany & Co, Chloé, Louis Vuitton, Alexander McQueen, Pucci, and Marc Jacobs. He was creative director of Pollini and spent three-and-a-half years as chief creative officer at DVF (Diane von Furstenberg).

He’d founded his own Jonathan Saunders International label in 2004 and that ran for 12 years, winning a host of celebrity fans including Michelle Obama, Kate Middleton and then-British Prime Minister David Cameron‘s wife Samantha.