ROKSANDA

For a statement piece, many feel it is. ROKSANDA is built on sculptural silhouettes and bold colour, so a dress reads as a considered, occasion-worthy item rather than a basic. If you are drawn to its architectural shapes and want a wardrobe centrepiece that feels like wearable art, it earns its place; if you mostly want quiet minimalism, the aesthetic may be more expressive than you need.

The price reflects designer-level construction and a very distinctive point of view. Roksanda Ilinčić trained in architecture before fashion, and that shows in the precise tailoring and sculptural colour-blocking that define the label. Each piece is a London-designed, designer ready-to-wear garment, which sits at a different level from high-street colour.

Bold colour-blocking paired with architectural, sculptural silhouettes. The designer's background in architecture and applied arts, studied in Belgrade, feeds directly into the way she builds shape and contrasts colour. That combination of strong form and unexpected colour is what makes a ROKSANDA piece instantly recognisable on a red carpet.

The label is the work of Roksanda Ilinčić, a Serbian-born designer based in London. She was born in Belgrade in 1975, studied architecture and design at the Faculty of Applied Arts in Belgrade, then earned a master's in Womenswear at Central Saint Martins in London. She founded and still owns the brand, which is stylised in all caps.

Roksanda Ilinčić introduced the ROKSANDA label in 2005 at London Fashion Week, and she has shown on the London Fashion Week schedule ever since. The brand later added leather goods alongside its ready-to-wear, building out a fuller designer offering over time.

Yes. The first ROKSANDA store opened in June 2014 at 9 Mount Street in London's Mayfair. It was a collaboration with the celebrated architect David Adjaye, which feels fitting for a designer whose work is so rooted in architectural thinking.

The label has a strong following among royalty and the red carpet. It has been worn by Catherine, Princess of Wales, as well as Michelle Obama, Cate Blanchett, Emily Blunt, Kristen Stewart, Keira Knightley and others. That visibility on high-profile figures is a big part of why the brand is so associated with occasion dressing.

Considerably. Roksanda Ilinčić won the Red Carpet Award at the 2012 British Fashion Awards and British Designer of the Year at the 2016 Elle Style Awards, among other honours. In 2023 she was appointed MBE in the Birthday Honours for services to fashion design, a sign of how established the label has become.

Yes, which speaks to the artistic side of the work. ROKSANDA designs have been displayed in the Women, Fashion, Power exhibit at the Design Museum and featured in the Victoria & Albert Museum's exhibition Ballgowns: British Glamour since 1950. Seeing the pieces treated as exhibition objects underlines why owners often regard them as future collector's items.

Where some peers lean toward pared-back minimalism and tailored restraint, ROKSANDA goes the other way, with statement colour and dramatic, sculptural shapes. So the choice often comes down to mood: reach for ROKSANDA when you want a piece that commands attention and makes the colour the event.