In the lead up to London Fashion Week, SS Daley’s spring 2025 show swiftly became the most hyped presentation of the season. Harry Styles would be on the front row! Cate Blanchett his seatmate! Rumours around the designer’s debut womenswear outing swirled. “I can neither confirm nor deny,” said Steven Stokey-Daley with a glint in his eye, just days out from his schedule slot.
In the end, the whispers proved to be true (although it was Emma Corrin, rather than Cate Blanchett, repping the thespians on the day). Styles, who bought a minority stake in the delightfully eccentric British label in January, watched as his bespectacled Liverpudlian friend sent his first solely female edit out into the hallowed halls of the Royal Academy, where just 100 industry faces were invited to join him.
Harry, delicious as ever in SS Daley’s Brideshead-with-a-twist separates and (well-worn) Vans, must have been feeling chipper about his investment, as the collection played out with all the hallmarks–sweet animal-print knits, crisp yet nostalgic high-waisted suiting–that put the beloved young brand on the map, but with the newness required to attract a fresh audience. “Half of it is a very clear overlap with the men’s [line], the other is a complete new exploration and development of ideas for the customer who wants more of their wardrobe to be from us,” says Stokey-Daley, noting that loyalists have often probed him regarding what, exactly, an SS Daley dress might look like.
The answer is a craft-driven exploration of the point where the codes of mens- and womenswear overlap. Think: strict tailoring meets splashy florals, starched shirting teamed with ceramic jewellery, and tuxedo bib pleats found on gathered dresses. Inspired by the British artist Gluck – who was born in 1895 as Hannah Gluckstein, but rejected gender pronouns and also went by the names Peter and Hig–Stokey-Daley became enchanted by the painter’s universe and the individuals who moved within it, such as the florist Constance Spry and journalist Edith Shackleton Heald.