Agent Provocateur

The now iconic brand was founded in 1994 in the heart of Soho, London by Joseph Corré, son of the eccentric Vivienne Westwood, and his wife at that time, Serena Rees. Together they founded Agent Provocateur, with the vision of designing lingerie for women, with the woman in focus. The purpose of the lingerie was not to please the male gaze (although this was of course a side effect of the beautiful designs), but rather to strengthen and inspire the woman to feel comfortable in her own body and get in touch with her own sensuality.

The dream quickly became a reality, and thus Agent Provocateur opened the doors to its first store on Broadwick Street, with an incredible interior and atmosphere based on punk and decadence as we still know it from the brand's flagship stores around the world today. The enchanting universe has been a strong and well-established part of the brand's DNA from the first time the door opened on Broadwick Street. Stepping over the threshold of an Agent Provocateur store is a bit like going to another, decadent and sensual world.

With Corré as co-founder and child of Westwood, it was not surprising that Agent Provocateur's designs took inspiration from daring, brightly colored and boundary-pushing styles with clear punk references. The meeting between luxurious quality and edgy designs that were way ahead of its time was to prove to inspire women the world over, which is why Agent Provocateur was quickly on everyone's lips when the conversation turned to lingerie. There were simply no other brands that looked like them, either when it came to fit, design or universe.

Designed for women by women

Sarah Shotton, who started her career answering phones and sending invoices for Agent Provocateur, took over in 2010 as Creative Director of the brand she lives and breathes. Shotton herself can almost be said to be the humanization of the brand itself, where she has put her labor for many years to the great delight of all Agent Provocateur fans. And many years in the same company does not mean a short CV, because Shottons includes salesperson, lingerie stylist, window decorator, event coordinator, model, assistant designer, designer and now finally creative director. And while the love of lingerie has always been there deep down, it hasn't been easy for Shotton.


Lingerie that changes lives

In an interview with Fashionista from 2018, she tells what it was like to grow up as a "curvy girl with an F cup" (Fashionista 2018), how at the time, to her great despair, there was not much lingerie that suited her, and that the bit that did was neither aesthetically pleasing, comfortable or well-fitting. For a long time, Shotton believed that her body was wrong, that she had to lose weight to fit in so she could fit the lingerie that was in the shops.
Before Shotton started at Agent Provocateur, she worked in a second-hand store that sold vintage lingerie and bustiers, which she bought and remade so she could fit them. She therefore describes it as a completely unique feeling when her trial period at Agent Provocateur was over, and she stood in the fitting room for the first time in a bra with demi-cup and turquoise tulle as well as matching g-string and garter belt.

"The moment that I went into that changing room and took my clothes off and put that underwear on transformed my life, really. I felt totally empowered — I felt like Wonder Woman. I'd never been able to fit in any lingerie that was so beautiful and exquisite, and made me feel like a million dollars. I felt like I was a rock star in that changing room. For me, it was like coming home" (Fashionista 2018)

And precisely this feeling has been a great motivator and driving force for Shotton in his further work at the decadent lingerie brand. Her mission is to design lingerie that gives women a feeling of being "a million dollars" and that no one should go through the same process as herself, feeling like they don't fit in or that their bodies are wrong. Therefore, expanding the size range has been high on Sarah's priority list, and although the brand has expanded some of the lines up to a G cup, Shotton wants to continue the size expansion because everyone deserves to feel like "a million dollars". Agent Provocateur has, under Shotton's management, developed into one of the largest female-led lingerie brands from Great Britain. Agent Provocateur does not compromise on design or fit. All ranges are designed in-house with exclusive textiles, refined embroideries and innovative stitching designed with a focus on arousing confidence and power in the woman who wears it. The secret behind a personal style, according to Shutton, is self-confidence – when you as a woman have self-confidence, the style comes naturally.