Laura Ashley, one of Britain’s best-loved retailers has partnered with retail giant, NEXT to reintroduce their current range of home products and new collections online and within selected stores nationwide.

If you followed the news back in Spring this year, you’d have thought we’d be bidding a sad farewell in 2020 to Laura Ashley one of Britain’s best-loved retail brands.

In April of this year, the company fell into administration and given that many other well-known retail names had already closed their doors for good or were on or on the verge of, the heritage brand’s adoring legion of fans must’ve been fearing the worst.

However, this is far from the case as the company has formed a partnership with NEXT, another legend of the British high streets. This should come as welcome news to the embattled British retail sector which has experienced a torrid time this year.

Laura Ashly has been with us for more than half a century and is known for its high-quality products and iconic prints inspired by their British heritage. The company has now been relaunched under new ownership (Gordon Brothers), and the partnership with NEXT will see their home products arriving online via NEXT’s main website in Spring 2021. In addition to this, the range of products will also be showcased in selected NEXT stores within designated branded zones.

NEXT CEO, Simon Wolfson, said: “NEXT is delighted to be partnering with Gordon Brothers and the Laura Ashley team to relaunch this iconic British brand. We believe that the combination of the design vision of the Laura Ashley team alongside NEXT’s online and retail infrastructure can combine to revitalise this world-class brand.”

Laura Ashley’s Head of Brand & Partnerships, Poppy Marshall-Lawton, added: “We are very pleased to be partnering with NEXT to take the Laura Ashley brand to the next level. Finding the right brand partner to relaunch Laura Ashley was incredibly important to us. We were delighted with all the opportunities presented and felt partnering with such a dynamic and British retailer such as NEXT was the perfect progression.

Laura Ashley herself was always inspired by the past but excited about the future, so getting the chance to reinvigorate the brand is a perfect new chapter in our already fabulous story.”

Laura Ashley is an integral part of Britain’s retail history, and it was often said that one of their shops on the high street added class and elevated the local area.

Whether this new partnership will see the brand move onwards and upwards is anyone’s guess.

England is currently amid a second lockdown, and this will undoubtedly cause more pain for many retailers. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that this latest move by the heritage-brand is a rip-roaring, flag-waving success.

From Spring 2021, Laura Ashley Home will be available to purchase in selected NEXT stores around the country and via next.co.uk and lauraashley.com. In addition to this, the company will be launching licences collections which will be available both in-store and online. The new collections will consist of furniture, a new nursery range, home fragrances and mail order flowers.

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