H&M’s Mugler collaboration has people queueing around the block

theguardian.com:

I t is one of the few things apart from Christmas sales to guarantee overnight queues on the high street, and H&M’s latest designer collaboration – this time with luxury French fashion house Mugler – had people lined up around the block.

Hundreds of people queued outside H&M’s flagship London store on Regent Street on Thursday, while some determined shoppers had waited overnight since Wednesday, in something of a high street renaissance.

Despite the Mugler H&M collection launching online (with additional exclusive pieces) at the same time that shop doors were set to open, many preferred to brave the overnight temperatures of about 9C (48.2F).

At the front of the queue was Roberto Escorcio, a 31-year-old freelance recruiter who has been at every H&M designer launch since 2004. He had waited outside since 3pm on Wednesday in order to guarantee his coveted place.

“I would never stay at home to shop online,” he said. “It’s not just about buying the clothes. I always meet incredible people. I’m getting married soon and 50% of the guests are friends I made from queuing in the past.”

The highly anticipated collection had a heavy security presence, which led to a calmer atmosphere than in previous years. In 2015 the Balmain collaboration drew such an unprecedented number of people that the police were called to maintain order after reports of fighting and pushing.

This time, shoppers were divided into groups and given wristbands with allocated 15-minute time slots running from 9am to 1.40pm. Each person was limited to buying one piece from each style and ordered to walk rather than run.

Mugler is known for its figure-hugging designs featuring nude illusion panels and spiral cutouts that have been worn by Beyoncé, Dua Lipa and Kylie