High street giant Next has swooped in to save maternity fashion label Seraphine, the brand famously worn by Princess Kate during her pregnancies, after it collapsed into administration earlier this month.
The retailer acquired Seraphine’s intellectual property for £600,000, ensuring the beloved brand name will live on despite its recent struggles.
Known globally for its chic and practical maternity wear, went into administration on 7 July after failing to secure a buyer, resulting in the loss of 95 jobs. Insolvency specialists Interpath were appointed to oversee the collapse.
Next now plans to relaunch the brand with a renewed focus on its core audience—pregnant women and new mothers seeking stylish, functional wardrobe staples.
The move marks the latest in a string of high street rescues by the retail giant, which has built a reputation for reviving struggling brands.
As part of the £600,000 rescue deal by high street giant Next, Seraphine’s original founder, Cécile Reinaud, is making a comeback to the brand she built, rejoining in an advisory role.
The Princess of Wales wore the label throughout all three of her pregnancies, most memorably in the first official family portrait with Prince George, where she donned a fuchsia dress featuring a chic knotted waist.
The brand’s royal appeal didn’t stop there. In 2020, Princess Eugenie was photographed on Kensington High Street carrying one of the store’s oversized purple shopping bags, sparking speculation that she had just indulged in a maternity wardrobe refresh.
Reinaud founded Seraphine in 2002 and sold it to private equity firm Mayfair for £50 million in December 2020.
But after the company fell into administration earlier this month, resulting in 95 job losses, she admitted feeling “heartbroken,” blaming the new owners for “wiping out in four years the work of 20 years.”
