Nicholas Daley’s dual heritage of Scottish and Jamaican ancestry has always been a mainstay of his brand’s creative process and design ethos. For the new resortwear capsule collection, in partnership with The Glenlivet, Daley drew inspiration from the brand’s renowned whisky — which he said was an integral part of his multicultural life growing up.
In an interview with WWD, Daley shared that as a designer, he’s always “keen” to get involved with long-term partnerships and collaborations of this nature with brands like The Glenlivet.
“Within both cultures of my ancestry’s Jamaican and Scottish side, we come together through music and through family events; there’s always whisky, rum or both in tandem,” Daley told WWD. “It’s part of the way my two ancestral links and cultures celebrate.”
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He said that with his Scottish ancestry, working with The Glenlivet has been a notable partnership given his work, which emphasizes Scottish craftsmanship and storytelling. To further the Scottish-Jamaican connection for the partnership, the London-based designer intentionally sourced bespoke materials and fabrics from both countries and made them in the U.K. as an extension of how he operates as a brand.
“I’ve worked with traditional shoemakers, traditional leather bag manufacturers and legacy heritage brands. I’ve always found a way to bring a freshness and a unique perspective on British identity, British culture and multiculturalism. The Glenlivet was looking for a designer who could translate both elements of what the whisky and the Jamaica edition are about. I leaned into my [dual] heritage through the designs, through the colors, through the iconography and through the craft for the resort capsule.”
Daley went on to explain that the creation of a collection was always in the pipeline when he was first approached by The Glenlivet to team up. Last October saw Daley style actor and brand ambassador Thomas Doherty on set in Jamaica for the brand’s “Beyond Speyside” campaign.
Notably, Daley pointed out that, historically, Scotland and Jamaica have been intertwined — he often explores these links within his work and sees his Glenlivet partnership as a continuation of this. During the colonial era, Scottish whisky barrels were brought to Jamaica to make rum. The Glenlivet Jamaica edition is a 360-degree flip on this history, according to Daley, with the 12-year whisky finished in casks that previously held Jamaican rum.
For the cobranded logo Nicholas Daley and The Glenlivet have been using, the designer intertwined the two countries’ national flowers, the Scottish thistle and the Jamaican hibiscus. Daley said the logo’s flowers were an “intrinsic” part of the collaboration; he often sees pots of thistle when roaming Scotland and hibiscus grows wild on the side of Jamaica’s roads.
The resortwear is a four-piece capsule that includes Daley’s signature styles to create a soft linen shirt with an embroidered cobranded logo; longer tailored lounge shorts featuring The Glenlivet’s tartan pattern on the back pockets, made in collaboration with Lochcarron of Scotland; a hand-crocheted bottle carrier made from jute yarn in The Glenlivet teal color palette with a branded leather patch, and a silk bandana with Daley’s take on The Glenlivet tartan pattern.
The collection’s accompanying campaign imagery draws on references from a reggae bar in Kingston that he visited while on set with Doherty.
Ultimately, Daley hopes that the collaboration will open up his brand to a new customer base and wider demographic within The Glenlivet world who value “well-made products.”
“This partnership with The Glenlivet is best symbolized by the dual logo I designed for this collection, which features a Scottish thistle intertwined with a Jamaican hibiscus and celebrates my dual heritage. Both Jamaica and Scotland have had a major impact on everything from my creative process to my designs. From textures, to silhouettes, to the colors we decided to work with for this capsule, everything has been grounded in creating a harmonious blend of both my Jamaican and Scottish roots, ultimately working to bring the two worlds together in a meaningful way,” said Daley.
The Nicholas Daley x The Glenlivet resort collection ranges from $85 to $695 and is available on The Glenlivet’s website. A portion of the proceeds from the bandana will be donated to Food for the Poor Jamaica as part of the organization’s relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa.
