Wreckreation Wins License for Shelby Clothing Line

A Future Fashion Factory partner in Lanchester, County Durham has won a prestigious clothing contract with the makers of some of the world’s most exclusive cars.

Sally Smallwood’s brand, Wreckreation, has won the license to manufacture a clothing range for Shelby – the luxury motor company which counts the iconic Mustang among its brands and was  founded by automotive designer Carroll Shelby. Played by Matt Damon, Carroll Shelby can currently be seen in cinemas in the film Le Mans ’66.

When she travelled to the Shelby headquarters in Las Vegas and Los Angeles to show her innovative range of tops, jackets and jeans, company bosses were blown away by her design.

Models wearing Wreckreation x Shelby jeans

“It is a dream to design for such a prestigious, iconic brand,” explains Sally. “I’ve been in love with the Shelby car since I was a very young teenager. I had a print of one on my wall, instead of the latest boy band!

“I had seen some of the clothes bearing the Shelby name but they were simply mass produced and lacked the artisan qualities you find in the cars. I knew I could ​elevate the clothing range to match the luxury and exclusivity of a Shelby car.”

Through contacts in the fashion world Sally sent her designs with a video, shot in Stanley and Hartlepool and starring her 12-year-old nephew Logan, to the Shelby HQ in the USA. To her astonishment she was invited across the Atlantic to make a sales pitch. There she was given a personal tour of the organisation – in a Shelby Cobra – by company president Gary Patterson.

“He was very friendly and welcoming,” adds Sally. “When I told him about the jeans I wanted to create, he said, ‘Everything starts with a dream,’ which I found so inspiring that I’ve quoted him in my work.”

“It is a dream to design for such a prestigious, iconic brand,” explains Sally. “I’ve been in love with the Shelby car since I was a very young teenager. I had a print of one on my wall, instead of the latest boy band!

“I had seen some of the clothes bearing the Shelby name but they were simply mass produced and lacked the artisan qualities you find in the cars. I knew I could ​elevate the clothing range to match the luxury and exclusivity of a Shelby car.”

Through contacts in the fashion world Sally sent her designs with a video, shot in Stanley and Hartlepool and starring her 12-year-old nephew Logan, to the Shelby HQ in the USA. To her astonishment she was invited across the Atlantic to make a sales pitch. There she was given a personal tour of the organisation – in a Shelby Cobra – by company president Gary Patterson.

Wreckreation x Shelby jeans inside with certificate and presentation box

“He was very friendly and welcoming,” adds Sally. “When I told him about the jeans I wanted to create, he said, ‘Everything starts with a dream,’ which I found so inspiring that I’ve quoted him in my work.”

Buying the jeans will be as unique an experience as taking home a new Mustang. Each pair will be custom-made in-house by Wreckreation and labelled with a serial number, meaning they can then be registered by the owners online and tracked.

They will even come with a certificate of authenticity and an owners’ manual with tips on caring for each garment.

Shelby American Licensing Inc. CEO Neil Cummings said: “The jeans are like nothing we have ever seen before.

“The workmanship and attention to detail has been synergistically aligned to the essence of a Shelby car; from the automotive fabrics used in the jeans, to the serial number that comes with each pair. Even the waistband bears Carroll Shelby’s signature, just like the dashboard of a Shelby vehicle. As a Texan, Shelby always wore his blue jeans and these are like the performance version.

“These jeans are revolutionary.”