Represent Manchester Flagship Store17 Images
When Dazed last spoke to Michael and George Heaton of runaway success story Represent, the Bolton-born brothers were setting down roots in Los Angeles.
Obsessed with the Californian way of life right from being kids, they’d racked up a substantial following across the Atlantic, with the notoriously health-conscious Angelenos going wild for the brand’s sporty gear and slouchy loungewear. Despite also amassing a healthy community back in Britain, they decided LA would become home to their first bricks and mortar store, and threw open the gleaming glass doors of their West Hollywood space back in March 2024.
With store number one under their belt, the Heatons turned their attention back to their home turf, and put plans into motion to secure a retail space in the UK. But where plenty of fast-growing brands like Represent would head straight for the shopping mecca of London, the brothers decided to stake a claim on their hometown first.
Across a little over three years, the boys designed and brought to life a multi-level lifestyle space that lays out the full Represent offering under one roof – from city exclusives, like a limited edition, Manchester-branded football shirt, to heady ‘Cathedral’ candles, to ready-to-wear, footwear, and accessories. There’s also an expansive room dedicated to the mega-popular 247 performance line.
“London is the capital, but Manchester will always be the home of Represent,” explains George. “We wanted to plant the flag in the ground where we were born, and where we were built. It will forever be our home, so we wanted to pay homage to our city. The energy from our fans here is electric. It just felt right.”
“London is the capital, but Manchester will always be the home of Represent” – George Heaton
The store was unveiled across a weekend in October, with athletic events including Represent’s successful run club, and a boozy party attended by a bunch of Manchester’s creative community on the line-up. It finally opened its doors the first week of November, but that didn’t stop fans from trying to get a look at what was happening inside for weeks beforehand. “As soon as the sign went up, we had people knocking on the door trying to get in,” says George.
With plans to get store number three open now well underway, though its location is being kept under wraps for now, it’s highly likely to be a similar story. Below we catch up with George and Michael about taking over Manchester.
Hey George! Congrats on the store. I love that you chose the north over London for your flagship. What was your vision for the space?
George Heaton: The vision for the store was built and developed over the past three or so years, working with partners on different concepts until we got it perfect. We’d already worked on Represent spaces inside Harrods, Selfridges, and Flannels so we had a lot of experience to bring to our flagship. We’ve got the concrete finish, and our signature ‘flat white’ Pantone running across all the flat surfaces in the store – it gives so much exposure to the garments displayed and really showcases the fabric, details, and fit. The rails are built into the walls to keep it minimalistic and our initial logo is carved into the staircase and concrete walls.
Did you come up against any challenges or was it plain sailing?
George Heaton: The challenge of concept and commerciality always comes into play when working on retail, especially when the brand is growing at scale.
“[If I could go back and tell myself something right at the start of Represent] I’d use that famous quote: ‘It’s going to take a lot longer, and be much harder than you think’” – George Heaton
What was the response to the store like? I hear you had people banging down the door to get in weeks before it opened?
Michael Heaton: Yeah, it’s been mind-blowing – we knew there would be hype just from the response we’ve been seeing on our social channels, but the store staff tell us it’s been relentless. As soon as the logo was visible outside word started to get round!
Your fans love limited edition drops. Tell me about the special pieces available at the Manchester store…
Michael Heaton: We made a bunch of ‘Cathedral’ pieces, with a special design seen on t-shirts and hoodies, plus a candle which is the store scent. We did something similar to this when we opened in LA. And there was a limited round of football jerseys to celebrate the store [note: they sold out almost immediately]. We’d done some for the Euros this year and because they were so successful we pushed them for the Manchester store launch too.
You’ve come a long way from the garden shed. What would you go back and tell yourself now if you could travel back to the inception of Represent?
George Heaton: I think the famous quote of ‘It’s going to take a lot longer, and be much harder than you think’. At the inception of Represent we were very naive and trying to get our foot into the industry, and that was such a challenge for us as a young group with no backing and no background. The struggle to work with fabric suppliers, factories, press, fashion weeks and retailers was tough, and caused a lot of doubt through those early years, so I’d love to be able to reassure myself that it would all fall into place with consistency, drive and ambition to stay true to what we are building.
How has your community grown and expanded since we last spoke?
George Heaton: We last spoke in May 2023, so there’s been nearly 18 months of dedicated and focused community growth. From the 247 line we started the ‘247 Run’ which became a concept different to the usual run club. We show up in cities wherever we have a Represent activation, and host a run. This creates a huge surge of 200-400 customers showing up to run with us. We specifically like to say ‘this is not a run club’.
“[Seeing Represent clothes out in the wild] never gets old. It’s the same feeling whether it’s walking down Cathedral Street in Manchester or on a flight across Asia” – George Heaton
Outside of this we’re constantly in a progressive mindset toward attention to delivery, and when I say delivery, I mean delivery in every aspect: delivery of the detail, delivery of the garment quality, delivery speed, delivery of how we show up in store, how we connect with our consumers asking questions. Building a loyal consumer is at the forefront of the decisions we make, and how we show up is everything.
How does it feel when you see Represent pieces out in the wild? It’s everywhere.
George Heaton: It’s something that never gets old. It always sparks a bit of excitement, and it’s that same feeling whether it’s walking down Cathedral Street in Manchester or on a flight across Asia.
The fashion landscape is even more precarious than when you started Represent over a decade ago. What advice would you give someone wanting to start a brand?
George Heaton: I’d go back to the quote I’d given to my younger self, the distance between where you are now and where you want to be is going to take a long time. Regardless of others within the industry, and what is portrayed on social media, what you want your brand to be will eventually come if you stay true to yourself, your brand values and your brand DNA.
Obviously you have LA and Manchester under your belt now. Where’s next?
George Heaton: We’re underway with building out our third and largest location for the Represent retail footprint, but we’ll announce that closer to the time of opening. I’m really excited to continue building this physical presence. Having our own stores around the globe feels like a massive maturing process and step towards growth for us – they’re these footprints that can truly display the essence, quality, craftsmanship, and range of Represent, even down to the exclusive store scents and individual details. It feels like we are really building a lifestyle.
How do you see Represent growing in the next five years?
George Heaton: We have a plan, we have goals set, and the pathway may divert but we’re open to change. I envision a global footprint with our physical stores. We have great plans in the USA and the Far East for territory growth, as well as special projects around our strongholds in the UK and Europe.
