The apprentice in a haberdashery who built a multinational fashion company

On Passeig de Gràcia in Barcelona, ​​at the intersection with Carrer d'Aragó, stands one of the area's most prominent buildings. It was built in 1930 by the architect Joan Padró Fornaguera to serve as the headquarters of the burgeoning chemical company Anónima Cros. Many years later, when the company relocated, the building housed several tenants, including the Fashion Café—a restaurant promoted by various [unclear - possibly "businesses" or "restaurants"]. top models at the time—and the telecommunications company Amena—Retevisión's mobile phone subsidiary—until the multinational fashion company Burberry moved in in 2001. Although for a time the Spanish subsidiary of this firm was owned by Catalan shareholders, the Mora family, it cannot be overlooked that the key figure in the company was its founder, the British Thomas Burberry.

He took his first steps as an apprentice in a haberdashery, which allowed him to understand the needs of his customers. At just twenty-one years old, and with the experience he had gained, he decided to open his own shop, where he set out to make clothing to combat the cold and rain but that wasn't as heavy as what was being sold at the time. The business grew over the years, but the goal of finding a fabric that would both keep people warm and withstand moisture remained elusive. He had to wait until 1879 to find the Holy Grail, after having carefully studied the clothing of people who worked in the often-drenched English fields.

The fabric in question was called trench coat And we can easily deduce that this is what would eventually give its name to a garment that would become very popular. Over the following years, Burberry's waterproof fabrics gradually conquered the market, thanks in large part to explorers like Fridtjof Nansen (Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 1922), Robert Falcon Scott, and Ernest Shackleton, who used it during their polar expeditions. Before the end of the century, Burberry opened its first store in London, which for many years was the chain's flagship store. It's worth noting that the tailor John Emary, founder of the luxury brand Aquascutum, also claimed to have invented this fabric. Burberry's advertisements from the first decade of the 20th century featured gentlemen wearing top hats, which gives an idea of ​​the target audience.

Another step Burberry took was to send samples of its clothing to the British Army in 1901, which gradually adopted it for its uniforms, especially those of officers. From this venture emerged an iconic piece of the English brand, the trench coatwhich literally means trench coat. During the First World War the trench coat It became a fundamental element for British troops. A garment equipped with all the necessary extras to withstand the conditions of war. Years later, American cinema helped popularize this type of trench coat worldwide. While Burberry's initial inspiration had been the clothing of rural and working-class people, the products soon became a symbol of the wealthy.

The famous equestrian knight logo began appearing on Burberry clothing in 1920, and later the Scottish plaid so closely associated with the brand (inspired by a classic tartan from that country) would follow. Once local success was established, Burberry opened stores in New York and Paris, laying the foundations for the future multinational corporation. In 1917, already over eighty years old, the entrepreneur decided to retire and settle in Abbots Court, an idyllic spot on the English coast. Many years after his death, in 1955, the family business was sold to the Great Universal Stores group, ironically a catalog shopping company. Burberry's philanthropic side focused on promoting healthy living, emphasizing combating tobacco use and encouraging abstinence from alcohol (it was one teetotaller (decided). He also devoted much time to religious activities.

Exactly one century after the founder's death, Burberry is today a large multinational corporation with a turnover of more than 2.8 billion euros annually. Ownership is very dispersed, given that it is a publicly traded company without any major shareholders beyond investment funds with a purely financial interest.