Henry Holland (born 26 May 1983) is an English fashion designer, businessman and blogger from
Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. The population at the 2011 census was 17,872.
Historically in Lancashire, it is on the River Irwell in the West Pennine Moors, northwest of Bu ...
, Greater Manchester.
Early life and education
Holland is a graduate of the BA Journalism course at the
London College of Communication
The London College of Communication is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. It specialises in media-related subjects including advertising, animation, film, graphic design, photography and sound arts. It has approximately ...
and has worked for the following publications: the teenage ''
Sneak magazine
''Sneak magazine'' was a British weekly magazine for young women. It focused on celebrity
Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An ind ...
'' (fashion section), ''
Smash Hits
''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...
'' and ''Bliss''. He is openly gay.
Career
Prior to the launch of his own company, Holland gained attention with his Fashion Groupies T-shirt designs. Holland's range of 1980s-inspired T-shirts displayed catchphrases such as, "I'll tell you who's boss, Kate Moss".
In September 2006 Holland designed a range of T-shirts that were worn by both
Gareth Pugh
Gareth Pugh (born 31 August 1981) is an English fashion designer["Gareth Pugh: Fashion Designer."](_blank) and
Giles Deacon
Giles Deacon (born 1969) is a British fashion designer, Creative Director and Founder of Giles Deacon group, a fashion enterprise. Deacon joined the Paris Fashion Week in 2016. Deacon has been known to challenge the traditional ideas of womenswe ...
as they took their bow at the end of their runway shows during
London Fashion Week
London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London twice a year, in February and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fashion wee ...
. Gareth Pugh appeared to take a bow at the end of his show wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the words "Get Yer Freak on Giles Deacon" while later in the week Giles Deacon wore a T-shirt that had "Uhu Gareth Pugh" printed on it.
Holland subsequently designed a full collection and founded his own fashion house the "House of Holland" in 2008. He is well known for his work with model
Agyness Deyn
Agyness Deyn (; born Laura Michelle Hollins; 16 February 1983) is an English model and actress. She is best known for her successful modelling career in the 2000s, and has been called one of the decade's top models. Since her retirement from mod ...
.
In 2009,
Levi Strauss & Co
Levi Strauss & Co. () is an American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's () brand of denim jeans. It was founded in May 1853 when German-Jewish immigrant Levi Strauss moved from Buttenheim, Bavaria, to San Francisco, California, to o ...
debuted a denim collaboration with Holland. Later in September 2009, Holland negotiated a deal with the British retailer,
Debenhams
Debenhams plc was a British department store chain operating in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1778 as a single store in London and grew to 178 locations across those countries, also owning the Danish ...
, for the creation of a fashion line, "H! by Henry Holland"; the line was eventually sold in Debenhams stores from spring 2010.
For Spring/Summer 2010 he designed a pink wedding dress exclusive to LA-based boutique REVOLVE Clothing under his ''House of Holland'' line. Holland's 2011 collection features a number of T-shirts that display acronyms such as "waysb", meaning, "what are you sayin' babes".
In May 2012, Holland's collaboration with sunglasses company,
Le Specs, was released. The collection, entitled "Henry Holland for Le Specs", featured sunglass models with names such as "Muffin Top" and "Blinders". The collection campaign featured Australian hip-hop recording artist and model
Iggy Azalea
Amethyst Amelia Kelly (born 7 June 1990), known professionally as Iggy Azalea (), is an Australian rapper. At the age of 16, Azalea moved from Australia to the United States in order to pursue a career in music. Azalea earned public recognitio ...
. Following the success of his first two eyewear campaigns starring Iggy Azalea and Ioanna Gika, Holland released his third eyewear campaign, this time featuring model and actress
Adwoa Aboah
Adwoa Caitlin Maria Aboah (born 18 May 1992) is a British fashion model. In December 2017 she appeared on the cover of British ''Vogue''. She has also been on the cover of ''American Vogue'', ''Vogue Italia'', '' Vogue Poland'', and '' i-D''. I ...
. The range featured a design called 'Cagefighters'.
To mark Magnum's 25th birthday, Henry Holland has created a bespoke 1960s inspired dress complete with mimicked cracked chocolate made from layers of fabric and sequins. Holland follows in the footsteps of notable designers, including
Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Otto Lagerfeld (; 10 September 1933 – 19 February 2019) was a German fashion designer, creative director, artist and photographer.
He was known as the creative director of the French fashion house Chanel, a position held from 1983 ...
, who have also worked with the ice cream company. The dress took over three months to complete and is now worth around £5,000.
Media appearances
In Autumn 2008 and Spring 2010, Holland co-presented
T4's flagship fashion and music series, ''
Frock Me
''Frock Me'' is a British fashion and music television series hosted by fashion icon Alexa Chung, designer Henry Holland (fashion designer), Henry Holland and style scout Gemma Cairney. The show has a fast-paced magazine format exploring the re ...
'', alongside
Alexa Chung
Alexa Chung (born 5 November 1983) is a British television presenter, model, internet personality, writer, and fashion designer. She wrote the book ''It'' (2013). Her fashion label Alexa Chung, stylized , launched in May 2017 and closed in 2022. ...
and
Gemma Cairney
Gemma Cairney (born 19 March 1985) is an English television and radio presenter best known for her work on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music. She most recently presented '' The Leisure Society'' on BBC Radio 6 Music where she interviewed cultura ...
.
In 2012 Holland starred as a judge on fashion design show
Styled to Rock airing on Sky Living. The show, with
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...
as an executive producer took unknown British designers, giving them the opportunity to design for celebs such as
Cheryl Cole
Cheryl Ann Tweedy (born 30 June 1983) is an English singer and television personality. Born and raised in Newcastle upon Tyne, she rose to fame in late 2002 upon winning a place in Girls Aloud, a girl group created through ITV's '' Popstar ...
,
The Saturdays
The Saturdays were a British-Irish girl group based in London, England. The group formed during the summer of 2007 and have been on hiatus since 2014. The lineup consists of Frankie Bridge, Una Healy, Rochelle Humes, Mollie King, and Vanessa Wh ...
and
Katy B
Kathleen Anne Brien (born 8 May 1989), better known as Katy B, is an English singer and songwriter. She released her debut studio album, '' On a Mission'', in 2011, which spawned two top five hits, "Katy on a Mission" and " Lights On". In 2014 ...
. Henry's good friend and self-named "muse". He was also another guest judge on the show
Glow Up: Britain's Next Make-Up Star season 2
Celebrity clients
In February 2009, singer
MIA
Mia, MIA, or M.I.A. may refer to:
Music Artists
* M.I.A. (rapper) (born 1975), English rapper and singer
* M.I.A. (band), 1980s punk rock band from Orange County, California
* MIA., a German rock/pop band formed in 1997
* Mia (singer) (born 1983) ...
wore his black-and-white, polka dot tulle mini-design while heavily pregnant at the
51st Grammy Awards
The 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 8, 2009, honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the b ...
. The design was from the House of Holland spring/summer 2009 collection.
Influences
Holland states that
Nicola Roberts
Nicola Maria Roberts (born 5 October 1985) is a British pop singer. She rose to prominence in late 2002 upon winning a place in Girls Aloud, a girl group created through ITV's '' Popstars: The Rivals''. The group's success helped them win the ...
, of
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud were an pop girl group that was created through the ITV talent show '' Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The group comprised singers Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. The group achieved a str ...
fame, is his muse and heroine.
Administration
On 5 March 2020, it was announced that House of Holland had gone into administration. It was further announced that the seven employees of the business would be retained during, and to assist, the administration.
References
External links
*
Official news blog*
Reviews of his legwear productsProfileat ''
Teen Vogue
''Teen Vogue'' is an American online publication, formerly in print, launched in January 2003, as a sister publication to ''Vogue (magazine), Vogue'', targeted at teenagers. Like ''Vogue'', it included stories about fashion and celebrities. Since ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holland, Henry
1983 births
Alumni of the University of the Arts London
English fashion designers
Living people
People from Ramsbottom
People educated at Bury Grammar School
LGBT people from England
LGBT fashion designers
LGBT businesspeople from the United Kingdom