Burberry

Burberry opened his first outfitters in 1856 at the age of twenty-one. Within fifteen years he employed over seventy workers. The Haymarket flagship opened in 1891, and in 1901 the Equestrian Knight logo was designed, bearing the Latin motto "Prorsum" (forwards). But the defining product came from war. During World War I, the British War Office commissioned Burberry to adapt its gabardine officer's coat for trench warfare: the result, the trench coat, featured a deep back yoke, epaulets, buckled cuff straps, a button-down storm flap, D-ring belt clasps, and a zip-out lining. After the armistice it transitioned seamlessly into civilian fashion. The camel, black, red, and white check lining, introduced around 1920, eventually became the House Check or Nova Check, one of the most recognizable textile patterns in fashion history.

The brand's trajectory through the late twentieth century included a near-fatal episode of brand dilution. Aggressive licensing in the 1990s flooded the market with cheap Nova Check baseball caps and tracksuits, and by the early 2000s the pattern had become synonymous with British "chav" culture. Christopher Bailey's appointment as design director in 2001 began a decade-long recovery: he retired the overexposed check, rebuilt around heritage and British identity, and made Burberry the first luxury house to livestream a runway show in 2010. Subsequent creative directors Riccardo Tisci (2018-2022) and Daniel Lee (2022-present) have continued to navigate between streetwear currency and outerwear heritage.

For collectors, what matters is provenance and materiality. Pre-1990s gabardine trench coats in 100% cotton with intact Nova Check wool linings, D-rings, and "Made in England" labels command the strongest prices. The Nova Check cashmere scarf, launched as a standalone product in 1967, is the most liquid collectible entry point. Vintage structured handbags from before the licensing era have benefited from Y2K nostalgia.

On Auctionist, Burberry appears across Nordic auction houses including Kaplans Auktioner, Balclis, Bukowskis Stockholm, and Helsingborgs Auktionskammare, with 254 total items. The market spans outerwear, textiles, handbags, and accessories. Trench coats lead prices: a herringbone wool coat reached 4,100 SEK at one house, and classic beige and black trench coats regularly sell for 3,800-4,000 DKK. For Nordic buyers, Burberry's appeal maps naturally onto the Scandinavian appreciation for functional, understated luxury: quality outerwear built for real weather, carrying a century and a half of British craftsmanship.