“You know, the first thing I did when we started the Olympic collection [for Team Great Britain] was ask the athletes, ‘Do you care what you wear? Does it make a difference?’ They were surprised: most people don’t ask them questions about what they wear. Ninety per cent of them said feeling good about their clothes helped with performance. And they said they wanted to look like a team when they walked into the Olympic village. The nice thing was many of them were clearly excited to have a designer involved; there was a sense it gave them something of an edge. Then I also asked them how often they worked out.

We really wanted to take away any anxiety associated with getting dressed, so we made a look book the way we do for our regular collections, and then color-coded the clothes to show what goes together. That’s really how I approach everything. I want people to feel welcome when they come into our stores. Because I think if you’re not happy in what you are wearing, it makes a massive difference to how you feel. And if you are happy, you can keep your clothes for ever.”

-Stella McCartney in an interview with Vanessa Friedman for the Financial Times