OUR STORY
Take a trip down memory lane and see how Magpie Vintage came to life.
HOW IT STARTED
Magpie Vintage was founded over 10 years ago by Alice Lockspeiser. A true vintage enthusiast, Alice started her stall (named Ophelia and I) at Portobello Market, which sold an eclectic mix of preloved clothing, whilst Alice reworked vintage denim on her sewing machine.
After trading in vintage for a few years, Alice started her own label Vaccine, where she designed and managed manufacture with overseas factories. Whilst working on this, Alice saw first hand the negative impact fast fashion was having on the planet - seeing how much textile waste ended up in landfills. Vaccine ended its run and Alice returned to her first love - sourcing premium vintage clothing.
Magpie Vintage was born, becoming an established and respected vintage label. Known for it’s heavily curated vintage collections ranging from avant garde pieces, 1940’s workwear to 1970's western originals. The Brick Lane vintage market stall grew and that success lead to the Magpie Vintage Flagship store in opening in Camden Passage, Angel in December 2019.
When 2020 hit and shops in the UK had to close, Alice decided to make the best of a bad situation. She started sourcing vintage quilts, seeing the beauty and potential in these forgotten fabrics. The first collection of Emma oversized jumpsuits was created - all made from vintage quilts. When it launched online it sold out minutes, from then Magpie Vintage ready-to-wear was born.
HOW ITS GOING
Fast forward a few years and Magpie Vintage is an atelier studio in north London. Our small and dedicated team work together to create beautiful hand crafted ready-to-wear collections and bespoke pieces from vintage fabrics, selling them alongside the premium vintage.
