Byredo expands beyond London with Victoria Leeds flagship
Moving away from the typical London-centric trajectory of luxury beauty, Swedish fragrance house Byredo is preparing to open its first standalone store outside the capital — a 2,154-square-foot boutique in the heart of Victoria Leeds. This move marks a geographic milestone for the cult label, but also reflects the broader rise of niche beauty in regional luxury retail environments.
The new space, located in Victoria Quarter — already home to Aesop, Jo Malone, and Mulberry — signals Byredo's confidence in the northern market's appetite for elevated beauty and lifestyle products. It follows the brand's successful concession within Harvey Nichols Leeds, where sustained footfall and strong sales performance provided a reliable proof of concept.
Best known for its minimalist bottles and conceptual scent narratives, Byredo has built a loyal global following since its founding in 2006 by Ben Gorham. Acquired in 2022 by Puig, the brand remains emblematic of the niche fragrance category — one that continues to outperform the broader beauty market. According to market research firm NPD Group, prestige niche fragrance sales in the UK grew 13 percent year-on-year in 2023, compared to 7 percent growth in mass-market fragrance. This trend is further amplified by Gen Z and Millennial consumers, who are drawn to the artisanal positioning, perceived authenticity, and layered storytelling of independent brands.
The Leeds opening will see Byredo expand its physical retail experience to include not only its core fragrance line, but also cosmetics, home goods, leather accessories, and small luxuries — part of a deliberate shift toward full lifestyle branding. The move dovetails with Puig's strategy of cultivating vertical retail experiences to drive both brand equity and margin control.
'The luxury nature of Byredo means they will be a perfect fit with our leading tenant mix," commented Rachel Bradburn, leasing director at Victoria Leeds. "Yet another strategic brand decision to launch its first standalone store outside of London. Byredo's flagship further cements Victoria Quarter as the go-to premier destination for luxury brands.'
Victoria Leeds has been steadily positioning itself as a regional luxury hub, with recent arrivals such as Aesop and the announcement that sustainable womenswear label Nobody's Child will also open its first northern store there. These moves reflect a growing recalibration of retail geography, as brands increasingly seek to balance London flagship dominance with broader national relevance — and direct-to-consumer economics.
For Byredo, the Leeds opening is less a test case than an assertion: niche beauty has matured, and its market is no longer confined to urban centres or online exclusivity. In a post-pandemic retail environment where experience, locality, and curation are gaining renewed importance, the move underscores a simple truth — niche is no longer niche. It's the new mainstream, and it's going regional.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Western Telegraph
39 minutes ago
- Western Telegraph
Buy now pay later provider Zilch to launch first physical card
The fintech, which has been named one of the fastest-growing in the UK, said it means more of its customers can make payments in stores. Zilch currently offers a virtual card, stored in its app or in people's mobile wallets, which links to customers' debit cards and means they can pay for shopping flexibly. Buy now, pay later providers like Klarna and Clearpay have come under new standards since legislation was introduced last month (Tim Goode/PA) People can choose to pay in full, or spread payments over six weeks or three months, at retailers from Primark and Asos to Just Eat and eBay. While the virtual card can be used in shops as well as online, Zilch said that nearly 80% of UK adults do not regularly use mobile wallets so having a physical card will drive more transactions. It is also set to open up buy-now-pay-later options for bigger purchases like home repairs, hotel check-ins, and car rentals. The cards will become available to its existing customers from September. The London-based company has grown its customer base to more than five million since launching five year ago and securing authorisation from the UK's Financial Conduct Authority. It reached a valuation of two billion dollars (£1.5 billion) in 2021 and was named one of the UK's fastest-growing fintech unicorns this year. Buy now, pay later providers like Klarna and Clearpay have come under new standards since legislation was introduced last month. It came amid concerns that a lack of regulation has led some of the 10 million people who use it to take on too much debt.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Viktor Gyokeres has an incredible goal record and is a ready-made star, but Benjamin Sesko is proven in a major European league and has huge potential... so who should Arsenal sign this summer?
In an ideal world for Arsenal, Aston Villa would have beaten Man United on the final day of the season to edge Newcastle out of the picture in the race for the Champions League. There is no particular malice behind that thought, although a demoralising Carabao Cup semi-final defeat by the Magpies means Eddie Howe 's side aren't viewed particularly fondly by Gunners fans. But rather Toon striker Alexander Isak was viewed as a dream summer target for Mikel Arteta as he looks to reinforce his attacking options, yet given Champions League football will be returning to St James' Park, any move can now be ruled out. Nevertheless, it is still expected to be a big few months for Arsenal, boosted by a strong PSR position - and purse strings will be loosened as they try to strengthen across a variety of positions. There is no doubt that No 9 is the biggest priority though, with the lack of a quality option playing a big part in the third successive second place finish for Arteta's side as they drew 14 of their 38 Premier League games to finish 10 points adrift of Liverpool. Sporting Lisbon's Viktor Gyokeres and RB Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko are the two main contenders, but Arsenal fans and those inside the club are torn on who would be the better option. Both Gyokeres and Sesko are top class strikers in their own right and each have plenty of positives - and impressive goal records - to boost their case to Arsenal's recruitment team. On the one hand, a move for Sesko would make sense given the Slovenian star has been a long-term target. The Gunners have previously done much of the groundwork on a potential deal, having been close to signing him last summer before the player became unsure over how much game time he would get. Sesko has since netted 26 goals for club and country this season and at 21, the striker, who turns 22 on Saturday, presents an ideal profile for future growth. A transfer to Arsenal also feels like the perfect next step for Sesko, who has carefully constructed his career to date. After moving to Red Bull Salzburg at 16, he initially impressed on loan at their sister club FC Liefering who play in the Austrian second tier. Two strong seasons saw him score 22 goals in 44 games when he then made the step up to Salzburg's first team to fill the void left by Erling Haaland's departure to Borussia Dortmund in 2020. Sesko thrived and in the summer of 2023 he had interest from several teams across Europe, before he ultimately chose to join RB Leipzig to stay within the Red Bull network. Sesko almost joined Arsenal last summer and the Gunners have done due diligence on him In Germany, Sesko has gained crucial experience in a major European league and performed well despite Leipzig enduring two difficult campaigns. In 2024-25 he netted 21 times in 45 games, even though Leipzig crashed out in the League Phase of the Champions League following seven defeats in eight games and finished seventh in the Bundesliga. Sesko's variety of goals are also an added positive for potential suitors, with the 21-year-old having netted just six times from the penalty spot this season. Sesko is strong with both feet and has scored multiple headers - and overall he has an impressive career record of 90 goals and 25 assists in 210 matches. His experience of the Champions League would also be useful to Arsenal, although he is yet to enjoy any real success in the competition. Across four seasons, Sesko has scored just six goals in 28 games. However, it must be noted that the 21-year-old has generally played for teams that have struggled in the Champions League and he did manage to net four times in eight matches this time around. But when Arsenal are weighing up whether or not to go for Sesko, who is valued at £92.5m, there are also several factors that may encourage them to go for Gyokeres. The Swedish forward has enjoyed an incredible two years at Sporting and he is widely expected to leave Portugal this summer. In fact, it is understood that Sporting are currently searching for a new striker to replace the former Brighton and Coventry frontman. The Portuguese side are demanding in excess of £70m, meaning the Swede's options are limited to a few clubs with the financial power and willingness to spend that on a player. But Arsenal are one such team, and new sporting director Andrea Berta is said to admire Gyokeres from his time working at Atletico Madrid. And you can see why, with Gyokeres possessing an superb record of 97 goals in 102 games since joining Sporting for a bargain £20.2m fee. A 2024-25 campaign that saw the Swede net 54 goals and add 13 assists in 52 games has meant Gyokeres' profile has risen exponentially, something that was particularly boosted by his Champions League form. On what was his first experience of the competition, Gyokeres scored six goals in eight games, included a superb hat-trick against Man City in November. His rise has been less serene than Sesko's, with the 26-year-old, whose birthday is next week, failing to make the grade at Brighton during a four-year spell that also saw him struggle on loan at Swansea. However, a flame was lit once he joined Coventry and 40 goals across two seasons as a permanent player earned Gyokeres a move to Sporting. Despite his incredible record, there are a few concerns surrounding Gyokeres, including the fact that he will be 27 at the start of next season, five years senior to Sesko. His struggles at Brighton, although they now seem irrelevant, do raise some questions given he has never played in a top five European league, something Sesko has done with the Bundesliga. Mail Sport has previously reported how this is a view echoed internally at Arsenal, with figures torn on whether the striker can hit the ground running in the Premier League. There is also the fact that 20 of his 54 goals this season were penalties, although given Gyokeres scored every spot kick, perhaps that is something to be viewed positively. He also struggled to assert himself during Sporting's 5-1 thrashing by Arsenal in the Champions League. Nevertheless, the Swede's international record is impressive, with Gyokeres having netted 15 times in 26 games in comparison to Sesko's 16 in 41 for Slovenia, although again the standard of their respective teams should be taken into account. Whatever they decide, it feels as if Arsenal will be getting a top quality striker this summer and one that they hope will take them to a trophy after more than five years. Both strikers have their qualities, with Gyokeres possessing an incredible goal record over the past two years. In fact, in 2024-25, the 26-year-old averaged a goal every 79 minutes and converted 56 per cent of his chances. This outperformed Sesko, whose goal-per-minute ratio is 156, while he has a conversation rate of 47.1 per cent. A caveat to that is the quality of their leagues and the fact Gyokeres had 3.9 shots per game compared to Sesko's 2.31. He also averaged 9.16 touches in the opposition box, almost three times that of the Slovenian's 3.29. Overall, it feels like although Sesko has a poorer goal record than his striking rival, the fact that he is proven in a major European league and on an upward curve is extremely appealing. Arsenal have also done plenty of due diligence on him as a target and they have been tracking the 21-year-old for a long-time. The Gunners have plenty of money to spend this summer and although Sesko is likely to be more expensive than Gyokeres, his physicality, age and potential mean Mail Sport favours him narrowly as the better option.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Warning over TikTok food sellers not listing allergens
TikTok users are selling food without listing allergen information, the BBC has on TikTok Shop show people selling snacks and sweets without highlighting they contain one of the 14 main allergens that UK businesses are legally required to the BBC brought these listings to TikTok's attention, it deleted them and said: "TikTok Shop is committed to providing a safe and trustworthy shopping experience."Simon Williams, chief executive of Anaphylaxis UK, warned allergy suffers: "If the ingredient and allergen information isn't there, don't buy it. You're putting your life in grave danger." "We have policies and processes in place with our sellers to ensure the safety of food and beverages sold on our platform and we will remove products that breach these policies," a TikTok spokesperson it is currently possible to sell food on TikTok Shop without providing any ingredient or allergy BBC found one seller, Mega Buy UK, selling a sweet treat related to the popular Netflix show Squid Game and listed the ingredients and allergens as "not applicable". Another UK-based seller called The Nashville Burger listed a burger-making kit that contained milk - one of the 14 allergens food businesses in the UK are required to declare on labels. It also contained wheat - which should be listed as an allergen under cereals containing on TikTok Shop, the allergen information was given as "spices" and the ingredient description simply said "flour".The BBC also found a seller called UK Snack Supply advertising lollipops and crisps with no ingredient or allergen has deleted the adverts the BBC highlighted, but all three companies are still on TikTok Shop selling other products without providing full allergen BBC has approached all of these sellers for comment but could not independently verify that the sellers were all listed in the allergy charities say regardless of where the firms are based more should be done to keep consumers safe. TikTok is a place where food trends go viral - from the pickle challenge which involved eating a hot pickle wrapped in a fruit roll-up - to Dubai chocolate which sparked a shopping while users consume the videos TikTok has also become a platform to buy and sell a bite of the Lancaster's two children both have milk allergies and she regularly posts advice on TikTok as The Dairy Free thinks TikTok has a responsibility to ensure all products sold on its shopping platform meet safety and labelling standards."It's completely unacceptable and really worrying. Failing to provide ingredient information is potentially very dangerous, and it feels like a complete disregard for the safety of those living with food allergies," she said. Tanya Ednan-Laperouse co-founded The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation in the name of her daughter who died after an allergic reaction to a Pret a Manger said: "'TikTok is responsible for ensuring that all their UK food sellers meet legislative requirements to sell food products on their app. "Any that don't should be immediately removed from the app and investigated, but ideally this should not happen if their checks and balances are rigorous and in place."After her daughter's death, new safety rules, known as "Natasha's Law", were introduced which require full ingredient and allergen labelling on all food made on premises and pre-packed for direct sale. 'Putting people at risk' Kate believes TikTok is allowing sellers to "swerve" basic food labelling requirements as the app allows people not to list any ingredients at all and thinks the platform should penalise those who don't provide the correct information."Since Natasha's Law has come into effect I feel that, in general, allergy labelling has improved, but it's frightening that a huge platform like TikTok does not have adequate measures to ensure that labelling is in place," she said."The thought of someone with a food allergy, or an allergy parent, buying items that they assume are safe, when in fact they may not be, is really scary."Mr Williams from Anaphylaxis UK says the ultimate responsibility lies with the seller but does think TikTok could do more."At the moment it's being used as a platform to sell things that may not be safe. They [TikTok] do need to do more," he said, "There's a lot of people making a lot of money, great side hustle, but they're putting people at risk." Dr James Cooper, deputy director of food policy at the Food Standards Agency (FSA), which is responsible for food safety in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said: "Wherever people buy their food, it needs to be safe and what it says it is."Food businesses in the UK must be registered with their local authority and follow food law. All food businesses have a legal responsibility to sell safe food and provide allergen information."The FSA website says that if food is sold online or over the phone through "distance selling" then allergen information must be provided at two different stages in the order usually means providing allergy information in the online description and then also on the packaging so a buyer has two opportunities to check if their allergy could be triggered.
