CATHRINE SAKS & BARBARA POTTS

The Coming of Age of Saks Potts

By Bonnie Langedijk

Saks Potts founders Cathrine Saks and Barbara Potts have grown up in more ways than one. Launching their business Saks Potts in their early 20s, the duo built a brand coveted by many and worn by the likes of Bella Hadid, Cardi B, Paloma Elsesser and pretty much every Kardashian. There was something unique about Saks and Potts’ personal and DIY approach to content. Shooting products on their friends, it became a club of women you wanted to be a part of. The brand felt relatable in a market that was often overly thought out. This genuine approach attracted other like minded women to the brand, with whom Saks and Potts build personal relationships. Amongst them Glossier’s Emily Weiss, jewelry designer Sophie Buhai and model Giedre Dukauskaite. 

Despite their success, the duo wanted to shake things up. As they grew up, so did the way they approached getting dressed. With a longing to create a Saks Potts wardrobe that could be worn everyday, the two took the time during the pandemic to rethink the brand bringing us Saks Potts 2.0. And with the recent appointment of their first CEO Josefine Laigaard, it seems like the Danish duo is ready to do anything but slow down. 

Bonnie: Before we dive into the new Saks Potts, I would love to touch upon your relationship as friends but also as business partners. You’ve known each other since Kindergarten. You’ve grown up together as kids, but also in business. What has that been like for you?

Barbara: It's been good. I’m just so happy that we aren’t in the same place as in the beginning. When you start a company, you need to be the person who knows everything. But at the end of the day, you will never be good at everything. You find out what your role is and what you’re good at. When you know that, that’s where you can create something really beautiful. 

Cathrine: I think you’re totally right. We have a very solid relationship, and it’s actually maybe even like a relationship you have with your life partner or your family.

Barbara: Like sisters.

Cathrine: Business-wise, what has also been a factor in why our relationship continues to be so strong is, totally like Barbara says, we both agree on the same things but we’ve also found out what our own strengths are. We give each other a lot of space to develop these strengths and room to make decisions by yourself. I remember in the beginning we had to write every email together, because we always wanted to reply together.

Barbara: And you know when we looked at our inbox there were maybe four emails. And one email took so long. 

Cathrine: And when we posted on Instagram in the beginning we always both had to see the posts and check whether it was okay. 

Barbara: We even made a fake account to see how it looked. But I’m so happy it was like that in the beginning. If we started Saks Potts now, it would be a totally different story because we would know, okay you’re doing that, I’m doing that. I think it’s quite beautiful.

“It was nice to have a really DRASTIC change. And now we’ve made a point, I think you could say that. It's still us making the things that we love. ”

Bonnie: So two seasons ago you introduced the evolution of Saks Potts. Even though the direction is different, I can still see the Saks Potts touch.

Cathrine: That’s true. It still has the Saks Potts touch 

Barbara: But much more, I don’t think you should use that word, but more mature in a way. I mean all the prices are also a little bit…

HUR: more mature?

Barbara: A little bit more mature. 

Cathrine: Everything has been refined. We always worked with very exclusive materials, but now we work even more in-depth with everything. Every time we source a new fabric, we look for the best in clasa. For example, our Williams shirts are made from a fabric from a supplier called Thomas Mason.

Barbara: Do you know it? They’re quite famous.

Cathrine: They supply I think also for Prada and the English royal family. And it’s the best cotton. 

Barbara: It’s a classic shirt but a little bit more like a mens [shirt]. It has big pockets and a little ‘SP’ detail. [With our new collections] you can always see the little Saks Potts touch but [within] more classic styles.

Cathrine: It was nice to have a really drastic change. And now we’ve made a point, I think you could say that. It's still us making the things that we love. 

The Saks Potts walk-in closet pop-up at Atelier September in Copenhagen.

Saks Potts collaborated with iconic shoe brand Manolo Blahnik

Bonnie: What made you decide to move into this new direction? 

Barbara: Just like everyone else, we had much more time to rethink everything. [During the pandemic] we weren’t going to all these fashion weeks, production tours, sourcing tours, inspiration tours. Our business had actually never done better, but we wanted change. It was a natural development. If you work in a company and you can’t really see yourself in it, or you can’t understand the vision or the story, it’s hard to let the brand grow. We could still see ourselves in the old styles but we wanted to create something new.

Cathrine: If we would’ve just looked at how to earn the most money, we wouldn’t be where we are today. In the short-term it would’ve maybe given us a big turnover but it’s also typically where you see some brands not developing themselves. Doing the same over and over again because it’s the thing that sells. 

Barbara: We just do whatever feels right and sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s a little more tricky. We’ve always done it in that way. It’s a personal story. It’s Catherine and I. We design things we need in our closet, and what we like. We have a clear vision of where we want to go but we are always flexible too.

Cathrine: That’s so true Babs. It’s always been important for us to really follow our intuition and our hearts when we work and still make something that we can understand for ourselves.

Bonnie: And what has the change been like for you so far?

Cathrine: It’s been super exciting to release this new direction. It’s quite different from what we’ve done in the past. The first collection under the new direction was really focused on making these statement staple pieces that could make up a full wardrobe. It was a little bit more, I wouldn’t say basic, but really good pieces that you could keep for many years. Now it’s become more experimental. We’re working with new colors, silhouettes and prints. That’s also what we missed a little bit from the first collection. The response in general has been so positive. Some were asking: ‘Where are the shimmer pants? I want a new pair in my wardrobe!’ But it’s nice to hear that people love everything from the past and the present. We do as well. 

Bonnie: You were quite young when you started Saks Potts. And the brand is such an extension of who you are, that I can imagine you were ready for it to evolve as you evolved too. 

Barbara: We started [Saks Potts] when we were 19, and 20 so of course we’ve changed. We always dreamt about a full collection. Before you got the cool jacket or the shimmer pants from Saks Potts. The more specific, few styles and not a full look.

Cathrine: We wanted to create [pieces] you want to wear every day and not only on special occasions. 

Barbara: It’s inspired by everyday life rather than a specific, very strong theme which we did in the past. 

Bonnie: How does moving away from the themed collections impact your design perspective? 

Cathrine: We’re trying to design within stories. We still have some really clear themes, but just more different ones. We have this snake story for example. All the styles within the story have a very sleek silhouette. A bit 90s, minimal, simple styles in this snake material. Because we’re focusing on this closet idea, and these small stories, there isn’t one big red threat. 

Bonnie: Yes, you can just add onto it basically. 

Cathrine: It’s also important that it’s not too trend based, and too short-term. You have to combine these pieces with the rest of your wardrobe, and the next season. That’s also why we include the season in the neck label. It adds value in the sense that you want to keep a style from Spring Summer 2022 because it was something that you collected from that moment in time. 

Details from the Loudi trenchcoat

Caroline Bessette- Kennedy, the muse for the first collection under the new direction

Bonnie: As you mentioned earlier, you really focused on finding the best in class fabrics. That seems to be the red thread throughout the new direction. And adding value to every garment, like the mini booklets you included in the care label that tell a personal story about the product or about you personally.

Cathrine: The focus on details is really visible in the collection. We have a very big love for practicality and practical details like pockets and key rings where you can attach things and collars you can take off and on.Through the [mini booklets] people can have a small piece of Saks Potts by reading these small stories that mean something very special to us. It’s important that the pieces tell a story. It doesn't tell a story about the specific product, but it could be a story about the inspiration behind the piece. Or if it’s a pair of cozy knitted pants, we added a recipe for homemade buns that you can make while you’re wearing these comfortable pants at home. 

Bonnie: The idea of letting a garment speak to a consumer post purchase is really smart. And with the new direction you’ve also moved into more of a buy-now wear-now model, right?

Cathrine: Yes, we’re one season ahead of the rest. We always thought it was so weird to show a collection but to then not be able to sell the collection after. You get so much attention through a show, and followers fall in love with the things they see. They want to wear the pieces immediately, but they’re not available for sale. So we wanted to show styles that are available for customers to buy. 

HUR: That is almost the only exclusivity left in fashion, where buyers and influencers can own it after the show, but consumers can’t. But in the end the people that buy into your brand are the ones that really make it.

Cathrine and Barbara: Exactly 

Bonnie: Community is a big part of the Saks Potts brand, and you often have the same women walk in your shows. It feels like more of a genuine relationship than just casting models for a show. 

Cathrine: Yes, we have a really good relationship with almost all the models. It’s basically just our friends and the people that we look up to and that inspire us. That’s also why it’s important that they all feel comfortable in their outfit. They’re actually part of choosing their own outfit. We want to emphasize everyone’s individual personality and style. It might be at the cost of having a super cohesive catwalk collection, but it’s just important that everyone feels comfortable and that we have diversity within our model cast and our looks. 

Bonnie: Whether it’s your friends, customers or celebrities, these people all came to Saks Potts for this specific aesthetic. How do you think the new is going to fit in with the old?

Barbara: I think it’s going to fit very well. Of course we’re all getting older. Some of the girls we were dressing in the beginning aren’t the girls that we’ve been dressing for the past two years. We have a very beautiful community but it will also be natural to have some new girls in it.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.