Joanna Dai introduces Dai

Tell us about the history of your brand…

It happened on a flight. Eight years into my investment banking career, I had my fair share of long days. On that particular day, I had a 4am cab pick-up for the first flight out of London, a day of meetings around Stockholm, and the last flight back at 8pm. When I finally sat down on my return flight, my waistband was digging in, nothing stretched and I was uncomfortable. I wished I was in my yoga kit. Then, my a-ha moment: “Could this feel like yoga and still look like a power suit?”

After design and patternmaking courses at LCF and an internship with designer Emilia Wickstead, I got to work. We launched an eight-piece capsule collection in 2017. A few weeks later, The Times published a full feature titled “How to get dressed: the perfect trousers”, and we were off!

What is your brand best known for?

Trousers, trousers, trousers – starting with our Power Move Trouser family. Then Trail Blazer. Both are styles from Collection 01 in 2017 and continue to be our bestsellers.

What has been a significant achievement in your company’s timeline?

We were identified as the UK’s first luxury apparel brand to achieve Certified B Corporation in 2020. I had the vision of becoming a B Corp within 2 to 3 years of launching. The key requirement for certification is to embed the commitment to positive impact for our people and planet in our articles of association, and having worked in finance for so long, this really resonated with me in that it was legal guardrails to futureproof our impact-driven vision.

Other pinch-myself moments include dressing Holly Willoughby (amongst the many amazing women we’ve dressed) and opening stores on exciting streets like King’s Road, Marylebone High Street, and Seven Dials.

Why do you love the brand?

I always believed that brands had the power to influence change. We live by challenging the norm and being unbound by convention, whether that’s on product and material science innovation or through our own messaging on conscious consumption and leading a more sustainable lifestyle within such a highly polluting industry. Our brand is a blank canvas to create and amplify a better ethos for women and our planet.

Why does your brand represent the very best in British luxury?

We’re proud to be a graduate of the Walpole Brands of Tomorrow programme in 2020, the year of the Covid-19 pandemic. We embody premium quality British tailoring, made modern through performance and made responsible through our commitment to sourcing, manufacturing, and the welfare of our people. We have had the pleasure of contributing regularly to Walpole’s Sustainability Working Groups and share the same values for the future of British luxury.

What attracted you to becoming a Walpole member?

As a Brands of Tomorrow alum, becoming a member of Walpole was the natural next step. I'm thrilled to be a part of the rich cross-sector ecosystem that represents the best of British luxury. As we strategically grow as a brand, we see incredible synergies with our brand and products across the other Walpole members and industries.

If you could collaborate with another Walpole member, which one would you choose?

We’re working on a big strategic project and can’t give too much away right now. If you are reading this and have a need for sustainably-made premium, comfortable suiting to empower your people, let’s grab a coffee.

Tell us about an exciting development or new launch for your brand in the coming months?

Almost all womenswear brands design for a column body shape. From over 10,000 lines of fit data from our DAI DNA Trouser Fit Finder and Body Mapping Experience, we learned that most women are hourglass, followed by pear, apple, column, and inverted triangle. As a trouser-first brand, from the waist down this means that 67% of women are curvy (hourglass and pear combined). We are launching our hero products in Curve in 2023.

To learn more about Dai, visit daiwear.com