La DoubleJ, Orlebar Brown Drop Mood-Boosting Summer Capsule Collection

MILAN — La DoubleJ has partnered with the British brand Orlebar Brown on a summer capsule collection to be released on June 4. 

The collection, which includes 34 swimwear and apparel styles, marks the first time La DoubleJ’s founder J.J. Martin has tied up with a menswear label and brings her brand’s signature flamboyant and joyous prints to masculine silhouettes.

Martin and Orlebar Brown’s founder Adam Brown decided to join forces after reconnecting at a mutual friend’s weekend party in the English countryside.

“This collection is really a true founder-to-founder brainchild,” said Martin. “Orlebar Brown was looking to add a little more pizazz to their prints while we at La DoubleJ were looking to absorb some of that ‘off-duty’ elegance that they’re so well-known for.”

Martin said that although the result includes men’s and women’s designs, she considers the collection genderless, filled with pieces “meant to be borrowed from your partner or your BFF’s closet while on holiday together. This is a true marriage of energies and aesthetics.”

“I fell in love with La DoubleJ when I met J.J. Martin a few years ago. Her aesthetic is infectiously upbeat and vibrant — the ultimate manifestation of our mantra ‘Feel Summer’,” said Brown. “This collection is a superb fusion of both brands, taking them into new worlds. Without rules. Without constraint. With love and a sense of joy.”

In sync with La DoubleJ’s overarching mantra, the collection aims to “raise vibrations” with three exclusive botanical prints inspired by deific energies. These include the Dragonflower motif, which re-imagines a staple print of Martin’s brand; the Morpheus floral pattern dedicated to the god of dreams, and the more graphic Whitsun pattern.

Hinging on a color palette of bold red, white and blue, the prints were splashed on laid-back women’s pieces, encompassing off-the-shoulder frilly dresses, long frocks, billowing shirts, crop tops, roomy palazzo pants as well as bikinis and one-piece suits with cutouts or criss-cross details.

For men, silhouettes ranged from bowling shirts to Orlebar Brown’s staple Bulldog swim shorts, with a well-tailored fit, hallmark side-fasteners, fast-drying performance and five-year guarantee.

“From the start we knew we wanted to celebrate some of our timeless, iconic, most beloved pieces from both La DoubleJ and Orlebar Brown,” said Martin. “Adam has selected his bestsellers like the Maitian shirt and the Bulldog shorts, just as we’ve selected some of our evergreens like the Choux dress and the Better Than Your Boyfriend’s shirt. At the same time, it was also important for us to give a sense of newness and freshness with the collection,” she added, underscoring that the capsule intends to address different vacation moments, “from sunup to sundown, from the beach to the bar, from the ocean to aperitivo hour.”

“We are both passionate about expressive prints and we worked hard to find ones that best embodied a vacation mood; the colors, flowers and spirit of an idyllic Mediterranean escape. And importantly every piece, every silhouette, even the fabric had to strike a balance between feminine and masculine energy,” said Brown.

Priced between $395 and $1,100, the range will be available at La DoubleJ boutiques in Milan and Taormina, Orlebar Brown’s stores around the world and both brands’ e-shops. A special assortment of pieces will be additionally available exclusively on Net-a-porter.

To celebrate the launch next week, the two brands will stage a series of events in Saint-Tropez, Portofino and Ibiza Six Senses on June 4, June 6 and June 13, respectively.

In particular, Portofino will be a big focus for Martin’s brand. La DoubleJ is opening a pop-up on Friday to run throughout June at the Spinnaker luxury boutique. For the occasion, the capsule’s Dragonflower print is set to take over the store’s windows, curtains and carpeting. 

At the same time, La DoubleJ will take over the interiors of the waterside O’ Magazin restaurant for the entire month with custom chairs, menus, coasters and tablemats in the Whitsun print from the collection, too.

“At the end of the day, it’s such a pleasure for me to work any time, all the time, with other creative people, because the ideas just start tornado-ing around us, and I find that intensity extremely satisfying,” said Martin about working with Brown. “But even more than that I love meeting and brainstorming with other founders of businesses of a similar size to mine. We speak such a common language, we have all the same plights, fears, and frustrations. Not only is it so great to poke each other for ideas but it’s such a wonderful exchange of shared gripes in a certain way, and being completely understood — it’s like founder’s therapy. And plus, he’s just a delight. Is there anyone more perfectly English and proper but at the same time so devilishly fun?”

Brown launched Orlebar Brown in London in 2007 because he thought men’s swim trunks were too baggy and needed some tailoring. He implemented bold colors and graphic patterns, attracting a celebrity clientele including Leonardo DiCaprio, Jay-Z and Daniel Craig, who wore Orlebar Brown trunks as James Bond in 2017’s “Skyfall.” The label later became a resort and casual lifestyle brand with a bigger selection that includes cashmere polos, crochet tops, striped hoodies, and cotton and linen pants.

Since it was acquired by Chanel in 2018 for an undisclosed amount, Orlebar Brown has grown to operate more than 40 direct stores in London; Paris; New York; Miami; Los Angeles; Sydney; Dubai; Saint-Tropez; Marbella and Ibiza, Spain; Mykonos, Greece; St. Barths; and East Hampton, N.Y., and can be found in more than 250 other locations worldwide.

Most recently, the brand tapped “Fellow Travelers” and “Bridgerton” star Jonathan Bailey to appear in its spring 2024 campaign.