Daniel W. Fletcher is an exciting addition to London’s menswear landscape. With a natural knack for reality-biting reference, and a finely attuned appreciation of form and flow (he cut his teeth under Kim Jones and Lucas Ossendrijver) his is a formula to be reckoned with.

Opening Ceremony approached the Central Saint Martins trained designer to stock his Peckham-inspired graduate collection shortly after finishing his last class and since then it’s been all systems go, working his output into a tighter, more retail friendly capsule range that has just dropped into store for SS16. All while designing for Louis Vuitton (ahem) and putting the foundations in place for his much anticipated next season.

Tempe Nakiska: It’s been a long time coming, how does it feel to now have your pieces launching in Opening Ceremony?
Daniel Fletcher: I can’t quite believe it yet, when I was designing this collection last year in the safety of the Saint Martins studios I never imagined that six months after I presented it in the graduate show that it would be in stores on the other side of the world. With setting up my studio, designing for Louis Vuitton and trying to get my head around production, the last few months have been a real whirlwind but I am really pleased with how things are going.

TN: How exactly did the partnership come about?
DF: Opening Ceremony approached me shortly after I graduated to talk about stocking the collection, obviously it was quite a big collection to try and produce and I knew I wouldn’t be able to get half of the fabrics I had used again so I set about designing an exclusive capsule of eight designs from my graduate collection for them which has become SS16. They have been really supportive from the very beginning and given me a lot of guidance along the way which I am extremely grateful for.

TN: You’re launching your AW16 collection in February, how is it coming along?
DF: It has finally started to take shape although with production for SS16 taking so long I am a little behind. There are similar themes to my graduate collection as it continues to comment on social issues, and I have tried to establish the DNA of the brand and develop my signatures such as the bonded leather outerwear.

Daniel Fletcher’s SS16 collection is now available at Opening Ceremony and at at his e-commerce site.