What Went Down: An Ode To Browns East

As the old adage goes, home is where the heart is. And our second home, Browns East has certainly held our hearts since its opening in 2017. Nestled within the centre of London's Shoreditch district, this ground-breaking boutique blurred the lines between the physical and digital, taking cues from the boldness and creativity of its surroundings. The unrivalled Browns edit was curated in a genderless space where next-generation designers sat alongside established names.

The debut of Browns Nomad - our temporary, roaming retail concept boutique - we knew Browns East couldn’t last forever and, after five incredible years as our longest-standing Nomad to date, we closed the doors on 11th September 2022. Giving us time to put all our love into our flagship, Browns Brook Street, where you can still experience all of the Browns magic up close.

Browns East may now be closed, but our hearts will always remain at 21 Club Row, and we’ll never forget the incredible memories we’ve made there with our amazing friends and Browns community. It’s too hard to pick our favourite moments (each one has been unforgettable), but here are some highlights below… Including the greatest launch parties of all time, London’s smallest pub and a Gallery dedicated to the art world’s brightest stars…

Thanks for the great times, Browns East XO

What do you do when you move into a new home? Throw an amazing party of course. In the interest of keeping our new location spotless, we celebrated with the Halloween party to end all parties down the road at 1A Chance Street on 1st November 2017. Browns CEO at the time, Holli Rogers was joined by some of fashion’s fiercest creatives, including Christopher De Vos, Roksanda Ilincic, Nicholas Kirkwood, Peter Pilotto and Molly Goddard (just to name a few). Alice Kirkpartrick transformed the warehouse into an ‘80s-themed haven, and Stefflon Don and Skinny Girl Diet performed whilst party-goers sipped on cocktails served in IV drip bags and got tattoos on the house. A night to remember to celebrate an unforgettable boutique.

On Saturday 1st September 2018 we made Browns history, opening our doors internationally for the first time ever with a Browns Nomad pop-up inside the iconic Fred Segal store on Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles. To celebrate this iconic union, we asked two fashion favourites to share their love stories of both dear cities. While Alton Mason created an ode to LA, supermodel Karen Elson came to Browns East to show us London through her own eyes.

Just when we thought we couldn’t love the queen of Scandi-cool Robyn anymore, she launched the much-awaited RBN Björn Borg By Robyn collaboration exclusively at Browns East. On 15th February 2019, we invited Robyn, Naomi Itkes and the cast of the cult Swedish sensation’s music video 'Send to Robin Immediately' to our East Lonon home to celebrate the launch, where a lucky few fans were invited to the star-studded after-party at the former site of the iconic Limelight club.

The pursuit of limited-edition, sell-out status sneakers and streetwear is life, so we introduced Sneaker Beast as a celebration of the grails, the clothing and the community that surrounds the world of cult-worthy sneakers and awards the ultimate insider status. In partnership with Stadium Goods, we opened the box on a programme of events, hyped launches, exclusive drops and unrivalled collaborations that championed the experimental and creative culture throughout the month of May 2019. As part of the box-fresh celebrations, we partnered with Dazed to mark the launch of adidas by Raf Simons’ hotly-anticipated new Ozweego sneaker at Browns East with a dancefloor lit by the glint of iconic chrome-dipped soles.

Tony Hawk was here in July 2019. The skating superstar backflipped into Browns East to launch the Tony Hawk Signature Line created in collaboration with renowned photographer Anton Corbijn exclusively with us. Adult and child fans alike gathered at the boutique to have their boards signed by their childhood hero, and then enjoyed a somewhat surreal and pretty rad evening partying with their idol. Binge-watching the X Games and enjoying delicious baby burritos (the cheeseburger one…TDF!) and margaritas courtesy of Bad Sports. Surrounded by the collection that they could get their hands on before anyone else.

The immersive space at Browns East was a place where we built a world that was truly unique, creating distinctive experiences that you couldn’t discover anywhere else. Case in point: in July 2019, we welcomed punters to the smallest pub in Shoreditch, The Queen Beast. Paying homage to the great British institution, we invited our community to immerse themselves in our take on the quintessentially English pub experience. For more unforgettable experiences, visit the Immersive Room at Browns Brook Street. 

Peggy Gou knows how to party, so we knew we had to throw an unforgettable soirée to celebrate her fashion debut. And that we did… Loyal fans and fashion friends descended on Browns East back in September 2019 to be the first to get their hands on Peggy’s signature Haetae-print Kirin collection and to breathe the same air as the DJ.  The ‘Gou-mania’ was at an all-time high… From the moment she entered the room and hit the decks alongside her friend Maktoop, to when she finally hotfooted it out of the door to a LFW dinner hosted by Browns at The Standard…

The staircase of Browns East was not merely a way of getting from the ground to the first floor, but was also The Gallery; a space where we showcased a selection of the brightest stars of art. From 27th May to 2nd October 2021, London-based artist Babak Ganjei presented a collection of over 40 original works in the space, treating us to his witty, self-deprecating slogans and hilarious “Film Idea” series. At a time when we really needed it, Babak captured the silly side of life in his signature way that is both tender and hilarious.

When one of the most highly-anticipated collaborations of 2021 launched exclusively at Browns East, we had to mark the occasion with an epic in-store moment. For two weeks in November 2021, Dior x sacai transformed the entire ground-floor of our two-storey boutique with a bespoke installation that represented a creative conversation between two designers, two heritages and two cultures. As seen here on model Kai-Isaiah Jamal and Baby Bashy.

Big Little Rituals Launch Party

Continuing our legacy as the best party throwers around, in April 2022 we celebrated the launch of beauty at Browns with a party that was nothing short of epic at Browns East. Here, our beautiful community enjoyed our Beauty Studio for the very first time, when our Immersive space was transformed into a soothing sanctuary filled with our covetable beauty curation. Our guests left even more fabulous than they arrived, after being treated to manicures by Lauren Michelle Pires, express eye looks by Lynski, and temporary tattoos designed by Lucy Bridge and Nellie Eden, our Creative Beauty Editor in Residence.

In June 2022, we presented Browns Focus: Series Two a reinvention of our talent platform defined by the next generation of design, realised in collaboration with HOME By Ronan Mckenzie. We  invited Ahluwalia, Bethany Williams, FEBEN, Namacheko, Nicholas Daley, SELASI and Wales Bonner to create exclusive collections which were showcased in a bespoke installation in The Entrance of Browns East. On the hottest day of the year, we celebrated the launch with a party co-hosted by Ronan. Soaring temperatures didn’t stop us dancing all night.

You can still experience the Browns world up close - we invite you to our flagship boutique in the heart of Mayfair. Browns Brook Street boasts our unrivalled edit and The Focus - a metamorphic space championing new and exclusive concepts each season. As well as our innovative restaurant partner, Native at Browns, unique immersive experiences, and much more. Discover what’s on and plan your visit here.

Words by Sophy Davis Russell

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