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Brompton and Protected Species have teamed up to make moving around the city on a bicycle ‘the most stylish part of the day’.
The collaboration centres around two waterproof silhouettes which provide protection from ‘a stormy ride across the city, through to a confident stroll into a bar, café or boardroom’. The collection, which includes the Parka and City Rider silhouettes, has the ability to use a host of technical and safety cycling features whilst on the bike, which can then be tucked away to offer a multi-functional waterproof wardrobe staple.
Both styles are ergonomically cut to fit and protect the wearer in any situation whether she is cycling or not. The jackets are waterproof, windproof and breathable with every seam-sealed, have been developed using a four-way knitted stretch fabric and have a DWR finish in addition to the waterproof membrane.
“Whether we like it or not, feeling good in what we wear, or wearing something that assimilates with our sense of style is often linked to our confidence,” said Rebecca McElligott, co-founder, Protected Species. “If you look and feel the part you’re mentally on your way to embracing a new challenge.
“Our community is what makes us. They’re stylish, driven and active women who value freedom. The ability to move around the city easily is a big part of this, which is why many of them turn to the bicycle as their mode of transport. The products we make need to perform on their ride, but also look good enough so they can hop straight off their bike and into an office meeting, or a restaurant with friends. Brompton understands this better than anyone, and are the perfect brand partner to help us achieve this.”
Christina Lindquist, head of marketing at Brompton, added: “What we’ve created with the team at Protected Species strikes the absolute balance between technical, aesthetic and in-the-saddle sophistication. It was really exciting when we came across Protected Species because they ticked all the boxes in terms of the technical performance and functionality that fits well with our engineering-led, form follows function approach to our bikes.
“Crucially though it has a sophisticated, fashion-led aesthetic, and I think this is what resonates with everyone immediately when they get to see and feel the product. It’s not just a jacket you can take from the ride into the office or bar, it’s a jacket that you would choose to wear on a day when you’re not riding your bike!”
To mark the launch of the Brompton x Protected Species capsule collection release, the two brands are celebrating the many different sides of fashion in the saddle with a series of interviews curated by author, activist and city cyclist, Jools Walker, unearthing what it means to different female cyclists.
The series, which kicked off with McElligott, includes talks with Oonagh Taggart and Matilda Swanson, Brompton design engineers; Kate Hiscox, a music producer and blogger; Alexandra Golovanoff, journalist and social entrepreneur; Jess Fawcet, international Elles rider and equality campaigner; and Catherine Bedford, Dashel Helmet founder. The full interview series is available here.
“Having the right clothing can often be seen as a barrier to cycling as part of everyday life, but by working with Protected Species, we want to show that technical kit can look as good off the bike as when you are pedalling the streets,” added Lindquist. ”We want to shine a light on women who are out there doing just that. The hope being that their stories will inspire more women to ditch their cars or tube trips and experience the incredible freedom and joy cycling around a city brings to your life.”
The Brompton x Protected Species collaboration is available now at www.brompton.com and selected Brompton Junction stores.
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