Celebrating

years

1993 2008www.cathkidston.co.uk

Cath Kidston Ltd. was founded in 1993 whendesigner Cath Kidston opened a tiny shop inLondon’s Holland Park. She began by sellingvintage fabrics, wallpapers and brightly paintedjunk furniture she remembered fondly from herchildhood. Her clever, witty re-working oftraditional English country house style meantthat her shop became a cult success.

Gradually Cath began to design her ownprints and products. One of the first was a printed ironing board cover – practical,quirky and with a distinctive floral print; itcame to epitomise the Cath Kidston look. The product base has continuously expandedto include fashion, kids, an extensive range ofhome wares and most recently; the launch of the Cath Kids brand. Over the years, Cath’shigh profile collaborations have includedcreating tents with Millets, Nokia mobilephones with Carphone Warehouse and ecobags with Tesco and Marie Curie.

The business has expanded steadily to becomethe unique global lifestyle brand it is today. It now encompasses some 20 shops andconcessions in the UK and five in Japan. Morestore openings are planned for 2009 and thesuccessful worldwide mail order and wholesaledivisions continue to grow.

Cath Kidston Ltd. is one of the most influentialand original design companies to emerge fromthe UK in recent years and celebrates its 15thbirthday this year.

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Celebrating

years

1993 2008

www.cathkidston.co.uk

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It all began...In a small shop in Holland Park. The idea was tocreate a glorified house clearance shop - vintagechic for the interior design trade.

At the time there were plenty of smart antiqueshops and chic stores selling minimal designer waresbut little in between.

My inspiration came from car boot sales, where Icould pick up anything from a shiny paintedwardrobe to a pair of 50s rose curtains.

The first shop opened in October 1993, burstingwith a host of wonderful furniture & print.

This souvenir book belongs to:

© Cath Kidston®Limited Edition 2008

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Opening the first shop was quite a risk as there was nothing quite like it - it was before the vintage trend took off. I had to run an interior designbusiness alongside to pay the bills.

The lucky break came when I started making my own products - a floweryironing board cover caught the attention of the press just as Notting Hillbecame trendy and the business took off.

Key early products were aprons, wash bags, oven gloves, ironing board coversand cheerful rose wallpaper - all with a retro feel.

The first shop...

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The first products...Were quite basic - things that would be cutand sewn by a domestic sewing machine...

Floral gingham pink apron

Boat print apron

Paisley pinkcarrier bag store

Floral gingham pinkhair scrunchyStrawberry blue handbag Floral gingham

green hottie coverClassic rose whitepyjama bottoms

Paisley lilac cushion

Bathroom printwashbag

Yellow stripejewellery pouch

Pink stripejewellery pouch

Floral ginghamgreen swimsuit

Sprig blue peg bag

Floral gingham pink pencil case

Rose lilac cushion

Flowers napkin

Kitchen blue book bag

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The first catalogueThis was a handmade affair, using line drawings, lots of Tipp-Ex and asmall photocopier in the basement of the shop. All of the photographswere taken at home in an afternoon with a very basic instant camera.

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1995

2008

As time goes by The catalogue has become a major part of the business.

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Some of our favourite catalogue photo’s!

Autumn/Winter 2003

Spring/Summer 2004

Autumn/Winter 2005

Autumn/Winter 2004

Spring/Summer 2004

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Oilcloth arrivesFairly early on we introduced our signature oilcloth. It’sappeal was its practical, shiny coating that enhanced theprints. Our classic, best selling product is still ouroilcloth book bag of which we have now sold over half a million pieces.

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1999 - We go red, blue & logo’d!

Raj, our call centre manager

The warehouse gang

The call centre team

Product testing...

Print design

The guys that make the office work! Oh & John the UPS man!

Merchandising

Paul, director ofopperations

Marketing & design -messing about as usual...

Jo, the MD!Lori, head of retail

Product design & buying

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A selection home products

Pop flowers green garden kneeler

Lapland scene napkins

Bird white wickerpicnic hamper

Washed roses Roberts Radio

Strawberry blueoven mitt Toadstool pin

cushionRose bud pin tin

Rose maroc fold upgarden chair

Stanley red dog beds

Set of three cake tins

24 piece cutlery set in wooden tray

Star red first aid tin

Assorted bath melts

Green tin light shade

Breakfast cooks apron

House sewingbasket

As we have grown we have been able to introduce amuch larger product range!

Chicken egg cosy

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Stanley arrivesStanley, my Lakeland Terrier arrived in 1997 and has becomeour lucky mascot. We receive more calls relating to him inour call centre than any other part of the business. Littledo they know he is the office pest, raiding handbags forsnacks at any opportunity!

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20’s floral blue - Autumn/Winter 2007 Dandy - Autumn/Winter 2007

Peony - Autumn/Winter 2008 Brushed rose - Autumn/Winter 2008Painted flowers - Spring/Summer 2008Pressed flowers - Autumn/Winter 2007

Poppy - Spring/Summer 2007 Petit bouquet - Spring/Summer 2007

The shops always had some vintage clothing in them. With this in mind it made sense to introduce our own classic range of ‘vintage’ tea dresses. We started in the autumn of 2005 and now - seven seasons later - they’re still one of our most popular fashion items.

Fiesta floral - Spring/Summer 2006 Blossom - Spring/Summer 2006 Russet flower - Autumn/Winter 2006 Mini dot red - Autumn/Winter 2006

Tea dresses

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Antique rose bouquet1993

New bubbles2005

Rose sprig blue1993

Cowboy2001

Mini stanley2007

Our favourite prints...

Boat2002

Classic rose white2004

Mini strawberry blue1999

Washed roses2007

Gypsy red2001

...over the years

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Then we wentcampingOur pop flowers tent in association withMillets in 2005 and was certainly one of our most exciting product launches.

To see it photographed at Glastonburyamongst the sea of tents in the campsitewas a special moment for us.

Since then, we’ve gone on to make Tepees, windbreaks and even had our own painted caravan!

My influence for all of this was the ‘Carry on Camping’ movie - one of my all time favorites.

Pop flowers tent - Summer 2005

Multi stripe folding chair - Summer 2005

Multi check sun lounger - Summer 2006

Cowboy tepee - Summer 2006

Cowboy tent - Summer 2006

Multi stripe folding stool - Summer 2006

Sunshine poncho - Summer 2006

Sunshine Tent - Summer 2006

Camping scene tent - Summer 2007

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Washed roses - Autumn/Winter 2007

Sprig blue - Autumn/Winter 2008

Bird white - Autumn/Winter 2005

Ottoman rose green Floral

Ric rac stripe Winter town or something!

Star red - Autumn/Winter 2006

Whether it’s for charity or a challenge, we’ve collaborated with some exciting brandsover the years; from Roberts radio to Carphone Warehouse, Tesco and Marie Curie.

Our collectable radios are now on their fourth print!

Our printed phones with CarphoneWarehouse combined moderntechnology with vintage print.

Tesco & Marie Curie eco bags raised over £250,000for charity and were each made from nine recycled plastic bottles.

Collaborations

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Cath kidsOur latest adventure, Cath Kids, launched this summer.We have always sold a selection of kids products and now havea dedicated Cath Kids store in Chelsea and a catalogue too.

It took me years to realise that if I took the ‘ton’ off the end of my name I’d end up with a Cath Kids label, Duh!

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Where we are now!Bath 3 Broad Street, Milsom Place BA1 5LJ Tel: 01225 331 006

Battersea 142 Northcote Rd, LondonSW11 6RD Tel: 0207 228 657

Brighton 31a & 32 East Street BN1 1HL Tel: 01273 227 420

Bristol 79 Park Street, Clifton BS1 5PF Tel: 0117 930 4722

Chelsea - Cath Kids store! 12 Cale Street SW3 3QU Tel: 020 7584 3232

Cheltenham 21 The Promenade GL50 1LE Tel: 01242 245 912

Chiswick 125 Chiswick High RoadW4 2ED Tel: 020 8995 8052

Covent Garden 28-32 Shelton Street WC2H 9JE Tel: 020 7836 4803

Edinburgh 58 George Street EH2 2LR Tel: 0131 220 1509

Fulham 668 Fulham Road SW6 5RX Tel: 020 7731 6531

Holland Park 8 Clarendon Cross W11 4AP Tel: 020 7221 4000

Kings Road 322 Kings Road SW3 5UH Tel: 020 7351 7335

Kingston 10 Thames Street, Kingston upon Thames KT1 1PETel: 020 8546 6760

Marylebone 51 Marylebone High St W1U 5HW Tel: 020 7935 6555

St. Ives 67 Fore Street, Cornwall TR26 1HE Tel: 01736 798 001

Tunbridge Wells 59-61 High Street TN1 1XU Tel: 01892 521 197

Wimbledon Village 3 High Street SW19 5DX Tel: 020 8944 1001

York 32 Stonegate YO1 8ASTel: 01904 733 653

Selfridges - BirminghamUpper Mall East, Bullring, Birmingham B5 4BP Tel: 0121 600 6967

Harvey Nichols - Knightsbridge109 - 125 Knightsbridge, LondonSW1X 7RJ Tel: 020 7235 5000

Nagoya 4F Lachic, 3-6-1 Sakae, Naka-ku, Nagoya-Shi, Aichi Tel: 052 238 1126

Tokyo 1-2F Daikanyama, Hoshino Building, 26-9 Sarugaku-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0033 Tel: 03-5784-1352

Yokohama Lumine Yokohama 2F, 2-16-1 Takashima, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 220-0011 Tel: 045-444-1637

Fukuoka Lumine Yokohama 2F, 2-16-1 Takashima, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 220-0011 Tel: 045-444-1637

Japan

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Here are a few of the commemorative products we have speciallydesigned to mark the occasion of our fifteenth birthday. They areall limited edition and will only be on sale for our birthday month– September 22nd - October 24th 2008.

Celebration products!

Cake print shopping bag £8

Stamp print shopping bag £8

Commemorative mint tin £3.50

Commemorativepostcard set £3

Celebrating

years

1993 2008

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