The Tamesis
Welcome to The Scoop: a weekly email series in which I ask fashion insiders about the week’s stories. This will be a way for the Vogue business community to synthesize and reflect on the latest headlines every Friday and get a little inside scoop.
This week’s guest is Josh Bredehoeft, whom I met a few years ago when he was the Director of Brand Marketing for the outerwear brand Rains. Josh grew up in a small town in Minnesota and moved to Denmark over a decade ago to pursue a career in fashion. It’s not the most traveled route, but it pays off.
Josh started working in the marketing department at Rains in 2018, when the company was founded. After eight years, countless fashion shows, stores and events, as well as a headquarters move, it’s time for an exclusive.
Hi Josh! What is a scoop?
I found a new job at Bestseller, Denmark’s largest fashion company. They own more than 20 high street brands, including Jack & Jones and Only, and have stakes in Asos and Topshop. I’ll be the creative lead for Only, which is basically OG’s in-house brand.
It’s very exciting because it’s a big step for me. I spent eight wonderful years with Rains. When I started, there were only three people in the marketing department, and I left as director of brand marketing, overseeing a large, diverse team. It was a very successful run. But I was also ready for something new, and Only’s ambition really appealed to me.
What is the job?
Creative director is a completely new role for the brand, which means there’s a long journey ahead. I will be working with the brand, marketing and communications teams, as well as working closely with the design team. I won’t be directly responsible for the actual product, but I will be involved in development. Of course, once the product is in stores, how do we communicate with consumers and wholesale partners. Only has been around for 30 years and they know exactly who they are when it comes to their products. The problem we need to solve is how to express inner knowledge outwardly.
How did this job come about?
I don’t mean to brag, but the universe opened up for me when I decided to leave my previous position. Only’s brand director Søren Stig Hedensted asked me for a cup of coffee. I don’t know what the purpose of our meeting was, but I was very interested because Only was so successful. It is the brand that contributes the highest revenue to Bestseller. The first question he asked me was: “What is a brand?”
What makes a brand?
I think that’s trust. Different brands can look very different, but if you can get into the heart of the consumer and take responsibility for what you offer and how you make people feel, I think that’s a brand.
There is a large group of creatives who previously worked for high-end brands now moving to the high street. What do you think this says about the future of fashion?
I’ve been thinking about this. To me, Venus has always been a luxury. Then, when I decided to leave Rains, I had conversations with brands in Paris that would have been very interesting fifty years ago. But now, as the industry landscape changes, I feel like some of the most exciting energy is coming from the high street. When we talk now about the challenges facing luxury goods, maybe some of them have to do with a lack of proximity to the consumer. At a company like Only, the team knows their customers better than other companies.
