Ethical kidswear brand infaant recently opened its first store in Leeds Corn Exchange, showcasing its own collection alongside a curated mix of like-minded kids’ fashion and lifestyle brands. CWB speaks to founder Ryan Knight to learn more.
Laura Turner: What’s your career background?
Ryan Knight: I think I have done just about every role there is in fashion, starting at high school when I worked for a local women’s clothing business setting up a market stall a couple of days a week before school and working there at the weekend. Like many in this game I worked in retail for some time, at Selfridges in Manchester and then for a few years in London where I managed a flagship store on Carnaby Street with Lee Jeans. It was with Lee Jeans that I made the jump into wholesale, working with indies across London and the South East, partnering with some great stores and a lot of amazing people. It was likely the experience of meeting these founders that led me to open my own store back in Manchester, a menswear store called Shed. In the three years we were open there was a lot of learning for me that impacted how I approached future roles. It was one of the best things I ever did, but equally one of the toughest and most humbling.
In 2013 I joined THG (The Hut Group). At this time, the Group had an aspiration to enter the luxury apparel market. I was employee #1 of this new division, initially in a head of buying role before taking a broader accountability as MD covering all areas of a growing portfolio spanning clothing, accessories and footwear. Today, THG has a very credible reputation in this area, which I am very proud of. The second half of my six years at THG was a transition into the world of beauty and wellness. In essence, I replicated my role with the fashion business, launching a new division that over three years absorbed the acquisitions of seven beauty and wellness brands – a really busy time, including a lot of travel across the US, Asia and the EU working with a base of global partners.
I’ve been very fortunate to have met a lot of inspiring people and learned about their journeys with their brands, and so many of these people have influenced where I am today with infaant. Starting something from scratch is a different ballgame though, and the learning has very much continued.
LT: What drew you to kidswear and the launch of infaant?
RK: The very quick answer is that I have always worked in fashion, now have two kids, and it has been a very organic journey. The reality is that there have been so many influences that led to the brand. Having closed down my menswear business around 10 years ago, there was always an itch to do ‘something’ again. Infaant was one idea that kept resurfacing, and my own two kids have undoubtedly had a big influence. It all came to a head in lockdown, the urge took hold, and here we are.
LT: What does infaant offer?
RK: Just now, the collection is made of easy-to-wear pieces that my kids love to wear – T-shirts, hoodies, sweats – all made in Portugal and all 100% organic. We have put a huge focus on fit and the quality of our fabrics. Our fleece, for example, is a 360gm fabric, which is much heavier than you might typically find in kids’ clothing. It gives a sumptuous feel so it’s comfortable, but also stands up to whatever kids might throw at it. The hope is that these pieces are loved and then passed on to someone else to enjoy. I love the idea of seeing some of this first collection popping up on the reseller sites in a few years.
LT: Your prints are very unique – what’s the thinking behind them?
RK: Our print collection has become the real heart of the brand since its launch. I worked on them with a good friend, Danny Passarella, over a very long period, constantly refining and pushing the messaging. They are designed to be purposeful but to still appeal to our young wearers. Each print holds a slightly hidden message to discover and spark conversation around important topics like climate change or our impact on the habitats of some of our most beloved animals. The whole premise is to start a conversation and inspire change. If we can play a small part in a generation of kids that understand our impact, then I think that’s a great thing.
LT: Can you tell me about the new store?
RK: We opened our first bricks and mortar store in April in the historic Leeds Corn Exchange building. In our first year in 2022, we did a series of pop-up stores kicking off with Boxpark in Shoreditch and ending the year with a month-long space in the Corn Exchange. Having the brand in a physical space allows us to tell the story and is where our obsession with fabric comes into play. As a new brand launching purely online, you really can’t tell this story as well. You can talk about how great fabric feels, but having a space where people can feel it has seen a positive shift for us. Our space in Leeds is a fully immersive embodiment of the brand, including our original art pieces. People calling in understand what the brand is about straight away – it has been a positive launch for us.
LT: Why Leeds?
RK: Well, I commute from Manchester every day, so it certainly wasn’t the easiest option. I originally looked in and around Manchester but the thing that swung it for Leeds was The Corn Exchange itself. It is a very unique place that is dedicated to smaller businesses. Within its walls are the most diverse mix of stores that somehow come together – whether you are looking for a book, a plant, Yorkshire cheese, or just a coffee. Leeds is also somewhere I have always come to shop, there is a very different vibe in Leeds to Manchester, slightly alternative in terms of how people dress and style themselves. I like it, and I think it fits our brand well.
LT: What inspired the store’s design?
RT: The Corn Exchange itself is a beautiful building offering a lot of character. In the store we have these incredible arched windows and very high ceilings, so it was a good starting point. What was important to me was to create somewhere welcoming and bright, but differing from what you might expect from a traditional kids’ indie. We wanted the space to feel familiar to the parents and echo some of the stores they might be shopping in themselves. We uncovered a battered concrete floor that was a bit of a surprise, as the same oak floor runs through the whole building. I loved it, so we built the rest of the store around that, introducing some bright colours to the fixturing and birch-ply.
LT: Which other brands do you stock?
RK: We started working with other brands very quickly, likely driven by my background in wholesale/buying. Each brand we have introduced is a leader in ethical and quality production, such as VEJA, which needs little introduction in terms of its impact. We also work exclusively with Wood Wood in the UK, whose kids’ range is a direct takedown from the adults and all GOTS certified fabrics.
More recently we have looked outside traditional kids’ brands to find products that offer something to our customers. Brands like Fjallraven, whose bags are of such a high quality they last forever, and Ciele Athletics, which is a Canadian brand that makes caps for runners. The Ciele caps are great as they use breathable fabrics, are machine washable, offer sun protection, and are made from recycled fabrics that are also recyclable. They’re perfect for kids and come in so many great colours. In addition to clothing, we are working with a growing list of lifestyle brands like Mr Maria, Candylab and a couple more that are on the way.
LT: It’s clear you’re embracing ethics and sustainability, both as a brand and a retailer.
RK: Yes, they are key pillars of what we are about, brand and store. We have an incredible factory in Porto that we work with on our collections. It’s on a similar journey to us in terms of producing in the best ways possible. The more I have learnt over the last couple of years in developing infaant, the more passionate I have become myself. There are lots of brands that I would love to introduce to the store because I have grown up with them, or they are doing something original, but just now might not be producing in a way that is right for us.
One interesting example is Lacoste. This is a brand that I have grown up with and love for many reasons. Few brands have such a rich history – the first to add a logo to a garment, the brand that launched the first polo shirt, a brand of true innovation. Today, Lacoste is making great strides in its impact, looking to produce all products sustainably by 2026, which is a huge mission for a brand of that scale. For s/s 23 we launched our first collection with Lacoste but bought purely from those lines that are already using sustainable fabrics and cotton, a small collection, which at this stage offered up only one polo shirt for us. Next season our buy is much bigger as Lacoste makes progress in its mission, including more of the core lines our customers might expect. As it continues to progress each season, we will keep buying more. I like the fact that we are on a journey with the brand, each season showcasing more of its progress in our own little way
LT: What are your long-term plans for the business?
RK: We hit one year old in April and it’s been a busy year for us, especially with the launch of the store in Leeds. In this short time, our strategy has pivoted with a bigger focus on the store and third-party brands. What’s next for us is a renewed focus on infaant the brand and the launch of a much bigger collection with new categories. I would love to see the store become a destination for parents looking for something a little different, and in the next 12 months I would love to see the infaant brand stocked in a couple of our target retailers – they know who they are. The big ambition for us is to make some real impact, and the biggest win for us would be a lot of little conversations being sparked all over the world from our prints – who knows what good that might lead to?
To visit the infaant website, please click here.
