Martine Rose

If you are drawn to subversive, culturally-loaded tailoring, Martine Rose is one of the most distinctive names you can buy into. Her exaggerated proportions and warped classics have developed a genuine cult following rather than a passing trend. The pieces are an investment in design point of view as much as in clothing, so they reward people who want something with real attitude.

They are some of the more talked-about designer-Nike projects of recent years. Rose first collaborated with Nike in 2018, releasing her take on the tracksuit alongside Nike's Monarch model, inspired by English and American sports culture, and famously dropping the collection on Craigslist in London. The partnership has continued since, and the releases are prized for blending sport, subculture and her signature distortion.

Martine Rose, born 24 November 1980, is a British-Jamaican menswear designer and the founder of the Martine Rose label. She was born in Croydon, South London, and her designs draw on her experiences and interest in rave, hip-hop and punk subcultures. That mix of heritage and nightlife runs through everything the brand makes.

Rose established her eponymous menswear label in 2007. Before that she ran an earlier line called LMNOP with now-stylist Tamara Rothstein, which folded in 2005. The 2007 launch marked the start of the brand as we know it today.

She is known for warping classic menswear with exaggerated proportions, a look that quickly became characteristic of her collections. Her interest in nightlife and music has led her to use fabrics in menswear that are typically more common in womenswear, like fur, satin and lurex. The result is tailoring that feels both familiar and deliberately off-kilter.

Showing in non-traditional spaces is part of her identity. She has presented collections in a street market, a community climbing gym and a cul-de-sac in Camden, and her AW20 show even took place at Torriano Primary School, her daughter's school in Kentish Town. Some of this came from financial constraints early on, but it has become a signature way of grounding fashion in real London life.

She is described as a menswear designer, but she designs with a broad spectrum of people in mind. Her use of fabrics and proportions blurs the usual gendered lines, so the clothes appeal well beyond a strictly male wardrobe. In practice, plenty of the appeal lies in that fluidity.

In 2015, when Demna Gvasalia joined Balenciaga as creative director, he hired Rose as a consultant. The role significantly elevated her profile across the fashion industry. It is one of the clearest signs of how respected her menswear instincts are among her peers.

Yes. In 2023 she was named British Menswear Designer of the Year at the Fashion Awards, a significant recognition of her influence. It confirmed her status as one of the leading voices in contemporary London menswear. The honour reflects years of building a genuinely original design language.

Her British-Jamaican upbringing is central to her work. She counts being around her older cousins who were into raves, reggae, lovers rock, punk and dance music as formative, and she considers her Jamaican upbringing a major influence on her attitude to design and style. That lived experience of London's mingling music scenes is the engine behind the clothes.

Rose has a long-standing partnership with the outdoor brand Napapijri, which she renewed in 2026 with a Spring/Summer 2026 collection. The collaboration reimagines archival outdoor silhouettes, including the Rainforest anorak, through her subversive lens. It is a natural fit for a designer who loves recasting familiar garments in unexpected ways.