Saks Potts (Q3586)
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Saks Potts is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Saks Potts |
Saks Potts is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
Barbara Potts and Cathrine Saks know how to put on a show—and a party. This season all of their energies were devoted to the latter, in celebration of their brand’s first decade. Their blowout bash was held at the Swiss Embassy in Hellerup, a suburb of Copenhagen. The location was meaningful in that the friends had spent a lot of time there as young adults; they had earlier presented a Swiss-themed collection, not to mention the venue has an ocean view. The designers imagined this as their wedding party. “Both of us are not married, and we just felt like we needed to have some kind of a wedding in our life, and now it’s Cathrine and I,” Potts said, smiling, on a Zoom. And so there were speeches and a bridal cake. The food was by Frederik Bille Brahe; the entertainment included acrobats, face painting, and fireworks. The guest list, which Potts described as “quite authentic,” consisted of friends near and far and those connected to the brand; it was a who’s who of Copenhagen society that included the former prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt and rising art star Esben Weile Kjær. Many guests wore Saks Potts pieces, old and new; these ranged from luxe, if unseasonable, shearling to light polka-dot chiffon. Omnipresent at the shows was the brand’s orange polo shirt from last spring.Potts and Saks were teenagers when they started their brand. Well-connected and affable, they had great success with their candy-colored, fur-trimmed Foxy coats. As fur became unfashionable and the designers’ lives changed, they pivoted to doing wardrobe-based collections. Today, they offer a core collection of classics that’s always available alongside seasonal offerings. Their recent work often has a utilitarian feel to it; think cargo-pocket pants (with a loop for hooping earbuds) but in suede or pressed-leather croc and shearlings that keep out the Danish winter chill.The combined pre-spring and spring 2025 look book was photographed where the party was held to create a link between the anniversary celebration and the season. It was a nice, neat thought, though showing a Spanish-themed lineup in the Swiss Embassy felt a bit dissonant. The pair had been looking at pictures of Penélope Cruz’s ’90s style and of Rosalía, who has performed in the brand’s Foxy coat. Unfortunately, the designers’ take on Spanishness felt a little reductive, boiling down to ruffles and red lace mantillas.
14 August 2024
Barbara Potts and Cathrine Saks have made spectacular surroundings—Tivoli, Arne Jacobsen’s home in the suburbs, Kongens Nytorv, a public square that allowed passersby to take in the action—a part of their storytelling. The subject, of course, is their glamorous selves. So their decision to pare back the guest list to 150 and stage a non-seated show in their shop (once the location of the royal pharmacy) was a marked change, one the designers felt was in keeping with these volatile times.Kate Moss in her mid-2010s boho phase was the nominal muse of the combined pre-fall and fall 2024 collections, but you wouldn’t have guessed it. On a pre-show call Potts said the pair “didn’t really have a theme in the beginning,” nor was there much of one in the end. Designers needn’t reinvent the wheel every season, especially when the clothes relate back to their own personal styles.As they prepare to mark their first decade as a brand, Saks and Potts have been doing a lot of stocktaking, and this reads in many ways like a greatest hits collection. The famous foxy coat was back on the prowl, as were the sexy lace-front leather pants fromfall 2020. (In a strange coincidence, four years ago those trousers were worn by a model standing next to a Ferrari; this season’s show was opened by Stella Maxwell, about whom G-Easy sang “A Stella Maxwell right beside of me / A Ferrari I’m buyin’ three.”) This show, which was carefully edited down to 14 exits, underlined the duo’s gift for outerwear and for capturing a casually glam attitude.The sporty tri-color knit tops were a nice continuation from last season’s polos, and a party dress in a changeant material, a leather puffer in sundried tomato-red, and a luxe coat in a brown and white hide all had considerable appeal.
29 January 2024
Barbara Potts and Cathrine Saks were just 21 when they started their label in 2014 and became instant It Girls on the popularity of their candy-colored fur-trimmed coats. People are still talking about those pieces, but the brand has since phased out fur altogether and has moved on to a “wardrobe” approach to dressing, with a particular emphasis on leather outerwear and carpenter-style pants. 070 Shake was recently spotted in SP jeans on an outing with Lily Rose Depp, while Kylie Jenner wore one of their wispy silk halter-neck party dresses in July.From the looks of their Instagram account, this well-connected duo lead charmed lives; as if to prove that point, the rain predicted to fall on the outdoor seaside setting of their spring 2024 presentation mostly stopped. Saks Potts has become known for incredible show venues, each of which amplifies an aspect of their lives. Last season it was Tivoli Gardens; this one was held in the suburb of Charlottenlund, where the pair, who have known each other since they were five, passed happy summers splashing in the water and having treats at the circular cafe, Horden Rund (Around the World), from which the new collection takes its name.“What is super interesting and fun with this location is that normally we design a collection and then we find a location after,” said Potts at a preview, but “this time we actually found the location [first.]” Saks added: “the main thing that we had in our minds when we started up the collection was travels and summertime.” From there they imagined what a woman might pack for vacation.The designers made a convincing case for swimwear as ready-to-wear, pairing a bikini top with skirts long and short, and a maillot with cropped pants. Shirting is an SP speciality and the clear sequins applied to a brown and white striped cotton was a nice way to transition that look into something dressier. They also revived the dress-over-pants look, a Scandi-style staple. One of the hero pieces was the pair’s take on the pique polo shirt, in sherbet hues. Coming on the heels of the non-jean jeans at couture, there was a terrific “denim” set made of printed leather, the jacket with a fresh collarless shape. Metallic silver pants gathered above the ankle had a festive feeling.
7 August 2023
Saks Potts’s show was like a fairytale come to life. It was presented to a full house in the Concert Hall at Tivoli Gardens—a sort of Hans Christian Andersen-version of an amusement park founded 180 years ago, in 1843. Tivoli is usually closed this time of year, but Cathrine Saks and Barbara Potts worked some magic. Guests walked down brick paths under arches of softly glowing lights before entering the theater space hung with red curtains from which emerged members of the Tivoli Youth Guard, dressed like the toy soldiers. Moments of wonder are rare, rarer still during the hectic round of shows, and this is one that will be remembered.Fashion folk haven’t forgotten the candy-colored fur coats with which the brand first made a splash, but Saks and Potts, who have known each other since they were young girls and started their company when they were 19 and 20, have moved on. Both women are new mothers, and they enlisted their friends to participate in this collection which celebrated families of all sorts.The Nordics are a family-friendly region, with generous paid maternity and paternity leaves, and both mothers and fathers walked with their children in this show, which opened with looks in a cheery red like that of the kid “soldiers” uniforms. That was the extent of the carryover from the performance.As for the collection, the designers doubled down on the direction they set in 2021 and 2022, returning to Harris tweed, as well as luxurious leather and shearling outerwear. Despite being a sort of “uptown” brand, Saks and Potts have leaned into utility themes for several seasons now. Everything from a laser-cut suede dress to a neon green stretch dress was worn with some sort of belt or carpenter’s bag, and many had metal rings intended to hang earbud cases or gloves off of, the better to be hands-free when playing with your child at Tivoli.A lot of detail goes into the making of Saks Potts garments. They are posh, and the humble carpenter tool belts they are accessorized with have been made so despite their workaday origins. There’s a bit of a disconnect there. Where things fell into place was with the genderless Saks Potts uniform pieces the designers put on men. More of this please.A tighter edit would have clarified the overall message, yet this was a winning show. The pair have been diligently working to meet the sustainability requirements announced by CPHFW three years ago and implemented for fall 2023.
The process, said Potts, has “been inspiring and we had the ambition that at least 50% of all the materials that we work with should be certified in one way or another. But now we actually exceeded the goal and 70% of all the fabrics that we work with are certified materials, and that’s a very big step for us because we are still a smaller company.” Now, that’s marching to a new beat.
1 February 2023
Barbara Potts and Catherine Saks have been darlings of the Danish fashion scene since 2014 when they launched with candy-colored fur trimmed coats. They gradually phased these out and started working more with Leather Working Group-certified ethical leather, and in fall 2021 unveiled a new direction. The concept was based on creating a perfect wardrobe, but it somehow depersonalized their offering, which has swung between the extremes of uptown chic and party girl sexiness.The spring 2023 show was much better balanced, in part because it didn’t anticipate a woman’s needs (as their abstract notion of a wardrobe did) but was connected to real people and the designers themselves. Among the friends of the founders who walked was Pernille Teisbaek in the baggy-pants silhouette she loves wearing with a Saks Potts halter shirt and denim carpenter pants.The inspiration for this collection was another real woman, Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, who could be said to be living a real fairy tale. Born in Tasmania, she met her actual prince in a bar in Sydney, and they are living happily ever after. When Mary “moved to Denmark in August 2002 she was an ordinary girl working at Microsoft, from eight to five,” Potts explains. “And there were always these super cool pictures of her on the street wearing minimal clothes, but with a bohemian twist.” That look set the template for this season’s designs.Saks and Potts know how to put on a show, and staged their biggest outing yet, outside on Kongens Nytorv, which allowed the public to be part of the proceedings. A button-down with a pink sequin skirt had a dressed down elegance; those same sequins, made into a halter top worn under an open button-down and with cargo pants, elevated an everyday look. Fringed crocheted accessories added a bohemian touch to the collection. As for the leathers, the main message was mix-and-match separates. Erin Wasson closed the show in a sheer chiffon blouse and gold leather shorts to a song titled “Step by Step,” which seems to accurately describe Saks and Potts’s new way forward.
12 August 2022
Catherine Saks and Barbara Potts know how to put on a show. Last season they presented their collection at the private home Arne Jacobsen built for himself. Today, they invited guests to Copenhagen’s modern opera house, where models descended zigzagging staircases of glass and marble as the sun poured in. The tony setting fit the polished Saks Potts vibe, which in turn reflects that of the founders.Polish doesn’t need to be prissy, a fact that was proven by Erin Wasson who opened the show with a sizzling look: Blue leather pants and a neon green chiffon plunge-neck halter. Though Wasson carried it off in spades, in truth it’s somewhat of a stretch to imagine the Saks Potts woman as a femme fatale. The rosette on her leave-nothing-to-the-imagination sheer top hinted at the tamer mood of most of the collection, which combined elevated workwear influences and neo-country themes in the form of carpenter-style pants, a custom equestrian print, and tweeds.Outerwear remains a strong category at Saks Potts. The brand first found fame with colorful fur-trimmed coats, but now has a more wardrobe-focused approach. Saks and Potts aren’t creating narrative collections (which accounts for some of the piecey feeling of the lineup), but imagining the garments women need, or would like to have. A cropped navy jacket, complete with a hook to hold the brand’s ear pods case was a knockout, and an example of the designers’ attention to what Potts calls “super-practical details.”That dressy casual is Saks Potts’s sweet spot was best exemplified by a pair of roomy trousers worn with a rose-embellished shirt made of fine Italian fabric, with a whimsical belt sitting over the hips. Dashing style can come without a diva attitude.
2 February 2022
Among the highlights of fashion week in Copenhagen were the amazing locations—especially the outdoor ones. Saks Potts showed in the yard of the home Arne Jacobsen, the Functionalist Danish architect and inventor of the Egg chair, built for himself around 1930. The Bauhaus-style house is a clean-lined, white-painted, minimal box. It was here that Cathrine Saks and Barbara Potts revealed their fall 2021 collection and their new direction.Launched in 2014, Saks Potts first became famous for its colorful fur coats that took the Internet and street style by storm. Saks and Potts followed up that success by building their brand around young and fun clothes; their past presentations never erred on the side of serious. Now in its eighth year, the brand has recently gone through a rebranding from tip-to-tail, including a new, abstract logo based on the National Bird of Denmark, the Mute swan. “We started the company when we were 19 and 20,” says Saks, and both designers felt it was time for a thought-out and grown-up approach, with a focus on more timeless looks. Moving forward, garments will come with a tag printed with the season the look was introduced.Saks Potts’s fall collection combines a new functionality with a bit of the infectious frivolity that has made them such a success. A tweed suit was worn with a rose-print bra top, and the hem of the skirt had D-rings where an from which an AirPods case could be hung. There were carpenter jeans and khakis, a ruffled-strap slip, and a pair of white coats that had a sort of 1960s, Courrèges feeling. The knit cardigan and pant set offered an attractive alternative to sweats. If the collection feels new to Saks Potts customers for its more adult and irreverent approach to wardrobe staples, plenty of New Yorkers have noted a similarity with Downtown staple Maryam Nassir Zadeh's latest collection, herself an expert of cool girl ready-to-wear.The connection between the house, which seemed to be used as a canvas against which the clothes were shown, and the collection was not clear. It’s true that the pair were symbolically turning a page as they recalibrated the brand to reflect how they are living now, but the relationship between their garments and the Bauhaus ideal of form following function was more murky. Maybe that’s because the label is such an extension of its founders. “It’s a personal brand,” said Potts. “It’s our last names, so it is a quite personal reflection of Katherine and my lives in Copenhagen.
” As such their clothes aren’t designed for suburban lawns but chic city streets. Ditto for the vintage Manolo Blahniks the models wore.
14 August 2021
Several months ago, residents of Copenhagen were forced into a hygge state. The term is used to describe cozying up at home, slowing down, and staying put, typically during the cold winter months. But with the country in lockdown for most of the spring due to coronavirus, hygge became more of a required state of being rather than a state of mind. Then summer arrived and Denmark slowly began to open back up. Barbara Potts and Catherine Saks, like so many others, were cautious about heading back out into their normal urban lives. They decided to spend the majority of the season in the countryside at Potts’s family home, where they spent much of their childhood together. They slowed down and reconnected with nature. The designers embraced hygge, using it as a means of evolving their brand, adding in more ready-to-wear with a laid-back, looser vibe.For spring the Saks Potts ladies crafted a summery, easy wardrobe highlighted by new fabrics and silhouettes, like a beautiful white and black linen and cotton maxidress and nicely tailored khaki trousers. Everything was photographed in the countryside just outside of Copenhagen. In their typically cheeky way, Saks and Potts staged a paparazzi-style photo shoot around the narrative of a Danish family on summer holiday.The designers also expanded on some of their novelty pieces, reworking their metallic sparkle sets into oversized tank dresses with drawstrings at the bodice and flowing slip skirts. Their signature outerwear was a tad less playful too. A new trench with an obi-style belt in neutral shades will do well with both new and old fans of the brand.Speaking over Zoom from their studio in Copenhagen, Saks and Potts described this collection as more grown-up, pointing out that when they launched the label they were 19 and 20, and now they’re 26 and 27. Their style has shifted and their lives and business have changed, at least partly because of the pandemic. But as chilled out as their future may be, it still looks bright.
27 September 2020
The Saks Potts fall 2020 presentation was down, down, deep in the sub-basement level of a parking garage on Paris’s Left Bank. Here, in what felt like miles underground, was L’Art de l’Automobile, a vintage car dealer with a lineup of Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and Porsches parked about. At the center was Lewis Hamilton’s F4 LH44 motorbike on a pedestal surrounded by Saks Potts babes in Barbara Potts and Cathrine Saks’s latest wares. The connection between the vintage cars and their vintage-y clothing wasn’t subtle. As the duo explained, they imagined a woman on a journey—in a Lambo or possibly on the back of a Ducati—and dressed her accordingly, citing the high camp stylings of “Dirrty”-era Christina Aguilera and other naughty pop icons as their muses.Their best takes on the theme were their motocross leather suits with authentic patchworking and a svelte, bodacious vibe. These streamlined pieces pair nicely with the duo’s more toned-down outerwear too; many of the superfluous puffs and fluffs reduced for easy traveling. What was less successful were their transparent lace pieces—yes, they very well echo the sauciness of an MTVTRLdiva, but what purpose do costume clothes like this have in 2020? Instagram is surely one answer—and Saks Potts is smart to cater to that market. (A glitter catsuit similar to one worn by North West on the social media platform returns this season in sparkling gray.) But the proof of their ability to make clothes to last in is in the success of their outerwear business. Those coats move, grow, and live with the women who buy them without sacrificing on flair. Their ready-to-wear offering should aim to develop along the same premise.
26 February 2020
The Saks Potts ladies love nostalgia. Remember Oksana Baiul at the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer? Or how about Selena Quintanilla performing onstage for the last time at the Astrodome? Catherine Saks and Barbara Potts have referenced both in their recent collections, and for pre-fall they’re once again going back in time.The ’90s informed the new Saks Potts lineup. Their lookbook, which stars one of Copenhagen’s most popular models and influencers, Mathilde Gohler, is straight out of a fashion ad circa 1993 or maybeThe Matrixjust before the close of that decade. The new clothes are surprisingly minimal for Potts and Saks, whose brand was built on statement coats. Gone are the superbright colors—save for the soft baby pink. Saks and Potts focused on slim pencil skirts, tank dresses, leisurewear sets, and trench coats in a variety of new materials including vegan leather and snake and croc-embossed leather.Their beloved puffer jackets are gone too, and they’ve used their logo sparingly. A new version of their moniker decorates a crisscross strap bikini and a cowl-neck tank dress in black and white. Saks and Potts are upping their ready-to-wear game. Smartly, the concepts they’ve developed work well with their familiar coats. Now, Saks and Potts are not just the girls with the covetable outerwear. They’re the girls that everyone wants to dress like from head to toe.
30 January 2020
This season, Barbara Potts and Catherine Saks upped the ante on their ready-to-wear, only showing a single brown pleather version of their best-selling Foxy coat. Titled “Latina Gala,” their new collection for Spring was essentially a bow down to Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, the Mexican-American singer who was tragically killed by her manager in 1995. A rodeo-ready bedazzled white leather minidress with matching cowboy boots and hat worn by local model and Saks Potts muse Emma Leth was the star of the show. Saks and Potts also designed a Selena-inspired red beaded bralette, which was styled with impressively tailored black high-waist trousers. Similarly well crafted were the new cropped leather and denim jackets, which were cut a bit baggy in the sleeves, like the girls wore them back in the ’90s.Potts and Saks may have been toddlers then, but they have a knack for reinterpreting pop culture nostalgia. Make that pop culture, period. Selena Gomez has been spotted in their sparkle spandex tops and pants, and Spring’s bright blue fur jacket with heart buttons is sure to wind up on Cardi B.
9 August 2019
Welcome to Spa Saks Potts! Given the perennially sunny disposition of Danish designers Cathrine Saks and Barbara Potts, is it any wonder they prioritize self-care? The season’s inspiration struck twice. First, on a jaunt to Therme Vals in Switzerland, a stark monolithic spa that sits atop a bubbling hot spring. Second, a trip to Ladda, the airy little Thai massage and acupuncture parlor on the aptly named Rue de Paradis, where their first Paris presentation took place. “Actually, Barbara and I went here to get a massage six months ago and thought it was such an amazing space to step into,” Cathrine explained. “We like to not only be in Copenhagen, so we wanted to do something here.”Guests walked through an austere courtyard and lobby, following a series of clear SP logo stickers that had been stuck across drab carpet. When one finally arrived on the spa’s seventh floor, it was like reaching a French health oasis. Sensual saxophone sounds boomed over the speakers, and towels folded into the shape of nuzzling swans sat here and there. Mineral water was served alongside cucumber sticks wrapped in some leafy green and glass bowls filled with bracken starch jellies, and the rooftop terrace delivered a breathtaking view of the city, bathed in amber light from the just-setting sun.As for the clothes, models lounged happily around the room in more of the brand’s beloved outerwear. Their wildly successful fur-trimmed Foxy coat returned as a murky light-green number trimmed in curling Mongolian lamb, to which they added a black-and-white logo print and crowd-pleasing patent neon orange. “This is only a small selection of what we’ve made,” Cathrine said. “We also did one in neon pink.” Head-turning highlighter hues were a focal point, as seen in the magenta hooded stretch jumpsuits (an implausible proposition, until you saw Barbara wearing a nice beige one) and the shimmer-coated Lycra separates like a glittering orange tube dress. “It gives a little bit of a glass feeling,” Barbara added.Though they are wise to revisit these fan favorites, Saks and Potts are eager to expand their range. Thus one saw the introduction of dégradé puffer and mink coats of equal street-style appeal as their Foxy, a reflective silver nylon parka and skirt set, and the first Saks Potts bikini, which was printed with yin and yang symbols to nod to that self-balancing theme.
The little fur bags were also promising, like the tiny white mink tube, tucked just under the arm, plus a weirdly appealing white terry cloth duffel that’s part of an entire “towel-themed” capsule that will drop in April. Though color is their strong suit, neutrals like a camel-colored yoga pant and sports bra nicely offset the other half—that yin and yang principle in action.
27 February 2019
There was a lot going on at the Saks Potts show, which was held at the sports complex Østerbro Stadium. First, a dance troupe dressed in leotards came out to perform in the middle of the arena. Guests were seated on the floor as well as in the bleachers, most waving little “SP” logo flags as if they were cheering for a team. After the dance came a model, Princess Marie-Olympia of Greece, dressed in a dramatic gown and cape made entirely of white fur. She floated down the center of the space with a single spotlight on her. Finally, it was time for Barbara Potts and Cathrine Saks’s Spring 2019 collection to appear. The Olympics-inspired range was a mash-up of skier references and pairs skating vibes (Danish figure skater Pernille Sørensen walked in the show), with some ready-to-wear that didn’t quite win the gold. The lime green and silver holographic Lycra ensembles felt a little on the nose, as did the neon orange and pool-water blue patterned separates.Saks and Potts introduced puffer coats and vests (which were see-now-buy-now) featuring their popular logo and cool geometric patterns, and they managed to make the ubiquitous style seem new and covetable again. There’s no doubt these will be popular, as will their signature candy-colored furs. Speaking of the famous furs, there were just a few for Spring. The designers seem to be itching for a new direction, one that veers from the item that put them on the map. There is nothing wrong with that, and Saks and Potts are savvy to know when to capitalize on their momentum. But you don’t want to completely change course when you’re still a fairly young brand. This duo is talented and they have a strong vision; it just needed to be ironed out a bit more this season.
10 August 2018
Barbara Potts and Catherine Saks used to travel to Paris together from their hometown of Copenhagen. They would hang out at buzzy hotels and restaurants, and talk to anyone and everyone (sometimes an Instagram influencer or celebrity) they could about their new collection of candy-colored mink coats. This is called hustle and the Saks Potts brand was built on it. They are now in their third year of business, and the future couldn’t be any brighter for these two young women. Today the designers showed for the first time in New York, and last week they launched a special capsule collection on Net-a-Porter. For a pair of under-26-year-olds, their drive is the kind that can build a small fashion empire, if, of course, they stay on the right path. Thus far they’ve done well with balancing consistency and trial runs, mostly keeping the focus on outerwear while introducing new categories like silk dresses, shirting, swimwear, bags, and this season, umbrellas too. After debuting a new “SP” logo last season, they’ve upped the ante with cute polka dots, as well as pastel floral and leopard prints.Potts and Saks referenced Princess Diana this season, and though the styling at today’s tea party inside the National Arts Club was cheeky and fun, the clothes didn’t quite measure up to the quality and covetable nature of the coats. Some of the most delightful iterations included a custard-color trench and a pale blue, 1950s-esque overcoat with gray fur trim on the sleeves and collar. When styled with the clothes and swimwear, these coats create a very singular look that is totally and completely unique to Saks Potts. The designers figured out their formula early and they know what works for them. They also aren’t afraid to take some risks and to ask for advice from other leaders in the fashion realm, be they editors, designers, celebrities, or stylists. Saks and Potts may not need to elevator pitch their furs in a hotel lobby anymore, but that hustle is still very much alive and it’s certainly serving them well.
8 February 2018
From the word go—namely, the lily intarsia fur topper worn by Caroline Brasch Nielsen—the clear-as-day show stealer inSaks Potts’s collection was the statement-making outerwear. The young label’s Febbe coat has already found serious cachet among the street style set (including Pernille Teisbaek, spotted front row at this season’s presentation), and you have to imagine those same women and plenty more will fall hard for Spring’s takes. Among their ranks: a groupie-worthy periwinkle shearling trimmed with a goodly dose of the airiest Mongolian fur and a collarless number in supple-looking chocolate leather. The clothes worn underneath were nothing to sniff at either. Pieces like plaid ’70s flares or a coquettish gingham wiggle dress (styled with matching gardening gloves), teamed with the electric-pink flush high on models’ cheeks, could scarcely have been more charming.
12 August 2016