Style squad New wave of female design directors hit the high street

The health of the British high street is a much-discussed topic in fashion.

- Lauren Cochrane

The latest secret weapon set to resuscitate the sector? A wave of female designers at much-loved brands.

Jacqui Markham, previously the design director at Topshop and Asos, was named the new creative director at Whistles last week. She joins Maddy Evans, promoted to become the director of womenswear at Marks & Spencer this year, and Clare Waight Keller, the former Givenchy designer who joined Uniqlo last year.

Meanwhile, Cos, the fashion insiders' favourite, has had Karin Gustafsson at the design helm since its 2006 debut.

All of these brands have seen a boost in recent years. That has been in part thanks to items that go viral. In Lyst's hottest products for Q1 of 2025, an influential list of items fashionable consumers search for online, Uniqlo's £3.90 red socks and Cos's £75 barrel-leg trousers featured alongside designer items.

Whistles - and its parent company TFG, which acquired the brand in 2016 - will be hoping Markham can be the magic bullet. The brand was founded in 1976 and had a golden era in the 2010s under the stewardship of the high-street whisperer Jane Shepherdson.