Pre-owned Burberry

Burberry has passed through creative directors most buyers can name, and each left labels you will meet on a pre-owned piece. Under Christopher Bailey the house ran separate tiers, Burberry Prorsum for the runway, Burberry London for tailoring and Burberry Brit for the casual range. Those tiers were later folded into a single Burberry label, so a Prorsum, London or Brit tag places the piece in that period. Riccardo Tisci brought the TB monogram on canvas and hardware, along with bags such as the Lola and the Pocket. Daniel Lee revived the Equestrian Knight and put it on the Knight bag, the line the house makes.

What runs through every era is the trench in cotton gabardine, the tightly woven cotton the founder developed, and the check on scarves and linings. That is why a pre-owned trench does not read as last year’s.

The era changes what you check. On a Prorsum, London or Brit piece you are judging age, so turn it inside out and look at the underside of the collar, the cuff edges and the lining at the hem and under the arms. A repaired lining is still a repair. On a TB monogram bag the initials sit on the hardware, so look for plating lifting on buckles, D-rings and zip pulls, and scratches on the feet. On a Knight or Rocking Horse bag look at the corners and the base, then read the condition on the page and see whether the two agree. On any check piece, compare the folds and the neck with the flat areas and see whether the colour still matches.

Kove does not yet sort Burberry by these lines. Look under Clothing, Shoes, Accessories, Bags and Hats. Start in Clothing for the trench, coats and jackets. In Shoes, check leather boots and trainers for the check on the tongue or the heel. In Accessories, look for scarves, belts and small leather goods. In Bags, look at check canvas totes and plain leather shoulder bags. In Hats, caps and bucket hats carry the check, so run the fading test first there.