High-Street Brands Bring In Celebrities, Stylists and Cheaper Lines to Win Shoppers

Gap has launched a new collection with the designer Victoria Beckham, and Marks & Spencer has shown a catwalk range at London Fashion Week that shoppers could buy straight away. The Guardian reported both moves on 31 October 2026, as part of a wider look at how mass-market chains are borrowing from luxury brands.

London Fashion Week is one of the four main fashion weeks, the set of showcases where designers present their collections to buyers, editors and guests. Marks & Spencer, the British department store and food retailer, staged its show with celebrities in the audience, including the actress Joan Collins. Half of the pieces in the collection cost less than £50. Lisa Illis is the company's head of design.

The retailer also said the number of under-35s shopping at Marks & Spencer rose 16% year on year, according to the Guardian's report.

Asos, the online fashion retailer, has also changed its approach. Law Roach, a Hollywood stylist whose clients include the actress Zendaya, has been named stylist-in-residence. Vanessa Spence, the company's executive vice-president of brand, oversees that side of the business.

Asos has added AI stylists, which suggest outfits to customers using artificial intelligence. It has also introduced virtual try-on, a tool that shows how clothes might look on a digital version of the shopper, and a Buy the Look option. That lets customers buy every item in an outfit in one go.

The company has also worked with Tilting the Lens, a consultancy led by disabled people, on an adaptive collection. Adaptive clothing is designed for people who find standard garments hard to put on or wear, for example because of limited movement. No item in that range costs more than £65.

Asos reported sales down 12% in August 2025. In March 2026 it announced 50% growth in profits.

Topshop, the High Street brand that closed its shops years ago, relaunched in 2025. It now has concessions, meaning areas inside other retailers that it runs itself, in 30 John Lewis stores and at the luxury retailer Liberty.

The Guardian describes these brands as taking a leaf from luxury labels' playbooks to appeal to a savvier generation of shoppers. The moves sit on two tracks: names that draw attention, and lower prices and easier buying that keep customers on the page or in the store. Whether the approach lifts sales across the sector is not yet clear.