Biba founder Barbara Hulanicki launches new label, Hula

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Feb 26, 2021

One of the most influential names in fashion of the last 60 years has launched a new label. Barbara Hulanicki – the founder of key 1960s label Biba – is unveiling a new wholesale brand that shows clear links to the still-relevant Biba aesthetic.

The Biba store in London, which opened in 1964, was a must-see destination for any fashion fans, but with physical stores still closed, it’s perhaps no surprise that her latest venture is very digital.

She’s linked with fashion technology group BrandLab360 to launch Hula with the latter selling it exclusively to the trade via its virtual showroom.

The first collection for the label mixes the modern and the retro with the company saying that it “features a combination of modern forms in floating fabrics and nostalgic bespoke prints drawing on art and culture”.

As mentioned, there’s a definite feel of the 60s and 70s styles that summed up Biba (which were themselves influenced by looks from the 20s and 30s).

And while the Hula logo also gently reminds us of the Biba one, this is no rehash of bygone looks. 

Clearly focused on a period when social life opens up again, there’s plenty of “statement tailoring, retro-inspired dresses, updated smock styles as well as statement accessories such as the bucket hat and iconic 70s scarf”, rather than the loungewear that has been the key launch focus of many fashion companies in the past year.

Hulanicki said that “the future of fashion is going digital” and that the other important point about linking with BrandLab360 is that the virtual showroom can reduce the carbon footprint of buyers and also expose the label to a much wider audience.