Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Halle Berry's Rē•spin & Sweaty Betty Link For New Collection

Halle Berry's Rē•spin continues to grow and after establishing partnerships with FitOn and Amazon Halo, the actress' lifestyle brand is now teaming up with Sweaty Betty for a limited-edition, 22-piece capsule collection. Read more ahead of its May 18th debut below:

Sweaty Betty Teams With Halle Berry’s Re-spin on Activewear Collection

Britain’s Sweaty Betty has co-created a debut collection of activewear with Halle Berry’s Re-spin lifestyle and wellness brand. The limited-edition, 22-piece capsule includes a mix of technical and lifestyle clothing inspired by boxing and Japanese jiu-jitsu.

The collection melds Sweaty Betty’s design and technology expertise with Berry’s personal style — and showcases some of the actress’ favorite ways to exercise.

The collaboration marks Sweaty Betty’s first major partnership with an American celebrity, and a foray into a new category for Re-spin, which Berry launched last year as a “destination for conversation, connection and discovery.”

The tie-up is also evidence that collaborations between likeminded brands, such as Gucci and Balenciaga, aren’t limited to the luxury sphere.

“Halle Berry is an inspiration,” said Sweaty Betty chief executive officer Julia Straus. “As a longtime customer, Halle has always put our product through its paces with her incredibly high-energy workouts that include everything from MMA [mixed martial arts] style exercises to strength training, jump roping and yoga.”

The new collection, added Straus, offers “a seamless combination of technical performance and feminine expressive style. It also reflects Halle’s experiences and personal taste — it’s modern, feminine and versatile.”

The collaboration will also expand Sweaty Betty’s merchandise and customer horizons, she added.

“A collaboration like this is true to our core — it delivers on technical performance, but also brings a studio-to-street lifestyle and fashion element that our customers crave,” said Straus.

“Beyond the product, it is an opportunity to work with an incredibly inspirational and talented partner like Halle to amplify our mission to empower women through fitness. We believe this collection will not only excite our large existing global customer base, but also introduce the brand to an even wider group of women who share the values Halle and Sweaty Betty promote.”

Berry said Sweaty Betty was the first brand that came to mind when she was thinking about a clothing partnership.

“They know how to make technical activewear that not only looks great, but also truly performs. I love their mission to inspire and empower women to live an active life, as well as the value they place in community — a mission we share.”

Earlier this year, Sweaty Betty launched an eponymous foundation aimed at empowering young women through fitness.

The foundation’s focus is on girls aged 10 to 18, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds who face barriers to being active. The foundation said it is working with schools and communities “to inspire, motivate and support generations of girls on their journey.”

It is the brainchild of Tamara Hill-Norton, who cofounded Sweaty Betty with her husband Simon Hill-Norton in London’s Notting Hill in 1998.

Berry said she’s worn Sweaty Betty’s Power Legging for years, “so it was an amazing experience to design my own version, named after one of my most iconic roles: Storm,” (from the “X-Men” franchise).

She said she worked closely with Sweaty Betty’s design team, entirely over Zoom, to make her clothing vision come to life. “I’m so proud of what we’ve created. It’s truly a reflection of my lifestyle and features pieces that can take you from studio to street — and beyond.”

The collection has been made from high-performance fabrics, and includes sculptural silhouettes with raw edges, straps and slit detailing in a neutral palette of black, shaded grays and cream.

Sweaty Betty took Berry’s fitness routine as inspiration, adding boxing patch motifs to several garments such as Leticia, a pair of shorts named for the role for which Berry won her Oscar in the 2001 film “Monster’s Ball.”

Sweaty Betty has also put a Berry-style spin on some of its own best-sellers, including the Zero Gravity Legging, which has been made in an ultra-lightweight, sweat-wicking fabric with a high waist and an adjustable internal drawstring.

The team has also created a “studio-to-street” black dress and an oversize lightweight parka, made using an eco-friendly water-resistant finish. Prices range from $78 to $298, in sizes XXS to XXL.

Jemma Cassidy, Sweaty Betty’s chief product officer, said “from concept to production, we were naturally aligned with Halle, and she was involved every step of the way.”

The capsule’s campaign imagery and video have been shot on Berry by some of her frequent collaborators, including photographer Cliff Watts, stylist Lindsay Flores, and videographer Mark Roe.

The collection will be sold starting May 18 on Sweatybetty.com and through retail partners worldwide, with the second drop arriving in October.

Asked about the possibility of forging similar partnerships in the future, Straus said Sweaty Betty doesn’t plan on doing collaborations for collaborations’ sake, “but will partner with brands where there is a natural synergy and where we can bring together our creative teams to delight, inspire and empower our customers, globally.”

She added that the project with Halle and Re-spin was “incredible. As women leading purpose driven brands, our teams came together seamlessly.”

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