Learn more about the history of Childrensalon, and how the company grew to the world’s largest online retailer for luxury children’s fashion.
All images by Childrensalon
10 May 2019
----
In 1937, Sybil and René Harriman married, and what would eventually become the Childrensalon brand as we know it today, soon began. After the birth of six children and a love of dressing them beautifully, Sybil started sewing circles to teach local women how to create hand-smocked clothing reusing old fabrics for their own children.
What was originally a hobby, quickly became a small business and Sybil started her own brand, Joy Models, named after their eldest daughter. In 1952, the Harrimans rented a modest shop premises, and The Children’s Salon (originally spelled with two words) was born. The company proved popular and had orders nationwide, including those from royalty and celebrities of the time.
With her beautiful garments in high demand, Sybil started to add other brands to what The Children’s Salon offered. Fairisle knits, Harris tweed coats, wool kilts and more luxury garments imported from other countries, helped to increase the shops popularity even further.
----
As The Children’s Salon continued to grow, the company relocated in the 1960s to a bigger premises and their daughter Michele, now our CEO, joined the company. By the late 90s, Michele and her husband George, a famous illustrator, decided to launch a website for the company which introduced online sales to our customers and widened the customer reach. Since launching the website, we have also introduced multilingual customer service and a mobile app, making us accessible to more people and allowing customers to interact with us in multiple ways.
With the company’s success and popularity increasing further, we rebranded as Childrensalon and moved to Decimus Park in 2010. Now working from 10 warehouse units, we have nearly 400 staff members, 13 of which are members of the founders family. Despite how Childrensalon has evolved into the world’s largest online retailer for luxury children’s clothing, our ethos of dressing children beautifully is still at the forefront of what we do and the business continues to grow.
This month, we launched Dresses by Childrensalon, an exclusive collection of dresses suitable for both everyday and extra-special occasions. After working with over 300 luxury designers since our conception, we are proud to have designed our own selection of beautiful pieces.
Related Features
Iconic Designer | Gucci
Discover the unique history behind one of the world's most luxurious childrenswear brands, Gucci.
Iconic Designers | Giorgio Armani
Follow our timeline of Giorgio Armani's colourful career, from humble department store assistant to member of the fashion elite.
READ MORE
What do you think of this article?
Love it!
You already love it
Not for me
Already not for me