A Century of Print: Laura Ashley and SCADpro Team Up to Envision the Next 100 Years of Style
Laura Ashley, the quintessential British and global lifestyle brand, is proud to announce a collaboration with the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) and the university’s premier collaborative innovation studio SCADpro.
Reflecting Laura Ashley’s commitment to creativity and honoring its heritage while encouraging new interpretations of the brand for a global audience, this collaboration arrives at a historic moment for the brand as it celebrates "Laura Ashley: 100 Years of an Icon," a year-long tribute to the centenary of its visionary founder, Laura Ashley.
The partnership invites the next generation of creative talent from SCAD’s top-ranked degree programs to delve into Laura Ashley’s extensive archive. Students were tasked with reimagining the brand’s signature romantic aesthetic through a contemporary lens, developing future-forward concepts that honor the legacy of the iconic designer who began printing textiles at her kitchen table in 1953.
"As we celebrate what would have been Laura Ashley’s 100th birthday, we are not just looking back at her incredible impact on design, but looking forward to how her spirit inspires today’s talent," said Ben Luckadoo, VP of Marketing for Marquee Brands, owners of Laura Ashley. "Partnering with SCADpro allows us to merge our rich heritage with the fresh, unfiltered perspective of the world’s most promising young designers."
The Laura Ashley X SCADpro Collaboration
SCADpro functions as an in-house creative consultancy and design studio that partners students and faculty with industry leaders and Fortune 500 companies to solve business challenges. During the Winter quarter, for Laura Ashley, the SCADpro team focused on:
Market Research: Analyzed prospective markets, including the USA, the Middle East, LATAM, and APAC, ultimately narrowing the scope to the SEA and eventually Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
Licensing Innovation: Developed a localized licensing plan for the brand’s iconic floral DNA fashion and lifestyle while identifying potential retail partners, targeted distribution channels, cultural considerations, and positioning strategy.
Strategic Positioning: Identified potential partnerships and collaborations, consumer spending habits, and defined the brand's competitive strategy, selecting specific go-to-market categories tailored to the local landscape.
Marketing & Engagement: Outlined a comprehensive launch plan featuring product storytelling, packaging approach, immersive marketing activations, and social engagement strategies.
SCAD Professor of Fashion Marketing and Management Melanie Keys led the diverse team of 19 students. "Working directly with a globally recognized heritage brand like Laura Ashley to solve real business challenges gives students project management and design thinking experience that goes well beyond the traditional classroom. Over a rigorous ten-week quarter, undergraduate and graduate students from many leading programs including fashion marketing and management, graphic design, social strategy and management, and more, collaborated to apply their discipline-specific skills and develop a region-specific go-to-market strategy that was both insight-led and creatively compelling."
Student project manager Ieshita Neve, a senior majoring in advertising and branding, worked extremely closely with the Laura Ashley team. “Taking a deep dive into this brand’s vast presence made me realize how extensive this brand’s offerings are. Their romantic heritage floral prints are still so iconic and relevant to the newer generations, as part of the Generation Z myself, I fell in love with these prints and where these prints can stand out and shine. Laura Ashley is a brand that speaks to everyone and they have done such an incredible job of maintaining that core brand across the globe,” Neve said.
Continuing in the Spring quarter, students will develop collaboration collections that balance Laura Ashley’s romantic authority with Gen Z and Millennial audiences in global markets. The project scope includes performing targeted market research, identifying key territories and strategic partners, conceptualizing new products, and building a comprehensive go-to-market strategy. Students will also design PR and marketing rollout plans that support long-term brand success and scalability.
Laura Ashley 100: Celebrating 100 Years of a Trailblazer
Born on September 7, 1925, Laura Ashley transformed a home business into a global phenomenon, becoming one of the most successful female entrepreneurs of the 20th century. The 100 Years of an Icon campaign includes:
Archival Reimagining: The release of limited-edition collections, including the "Water’s Edge" wallpaper series and heritage-inspired apparel.
Global Activations: Special events at the brand’s new flagship location and digital showcases highlighting the "Founders in Design" initiative.
Education & Mentorship: A commitment to fostering emerging talent, exemplified by the SCADpro and Swansea College of Art’s collaborations.