Represent to open first UK flagship store in Manchester

Luxury British streetwear brand Represent is opening its first UK flagship store at 21 New Cathedral Street in Manchester this Saturday, 26 October.

The 5,419 sq ft store, which also has a whole floor dedicated to its 247 by Represent performance wear division, is opposite the Manchester Arndale.

The New Cathedral Street location will position Represent alongside luxury retailers such as Louis Vuitton, Selfridges, Paul Smith, Ralph Lauren, Canada Goose and Harvey Nichols in the heart of Manchester’s shopping district.

The opening follows a period of “mass growth”, with Represent “on track” for a record £100 million turnover by the end of 2024, and £250 million turnover by 2028.

Founded in Bolton, near Manchester, in 2011 by brothers George and Michael Heaton, its sales have grown at an average of 81.4% over the past three years.

It has gone from a business ran out of the brothers’ father’s shed, to being named the 68th fastest growing private company in the UK by The Sunday Times in June this year.

The Manchester store adds to the boutique Represent opened in West Hollywood, Los Angeles, in March, with its second UK store set to open in London’s Soho in spring 2025.

George Heaton, Co-founder and Creative Director of Represent, said: “As we continue to grow as a brand, opening our first physical UK store was a natural progression. Given that Represent was born in Manchester, and it’s where our global HQ is based, the city was the only choice– it is in our DNA.

“The Represent Manchester location marks an important and iconic milestone for the brand; having spent the past three years planning physical retail footprints, trialling the senses of energy, look, feel, and scent through our partners such as Selfridges and Harrods along the process.”

The new store will carry some Manchester exclusive Represent products, including hoodies, t-shirts, a ‘Cathedral’ fragrance and candle.

247 by Represent is now the fastest growing arm of the brand, projected to account for 14% of the business by the end of 2024.