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Preserving creativity
The Paul Smith Archive Transformation
When Alice O’Hanlon, the archive manager at Paul Smith, first set foot into the Paul Smith Archive as a freelance consultant five years ago, she was met with a challenge. Alice recalls how 50 years of history had been tucked away in an industrial warehouse without any real archive system. This treasure chest was rich with inspiration but was fairly disorganized and inaccessible and not very good from a conservation point of view.
The collection
Paul Smith, the legendary British designer, is best known for his clothing. However, his archive is incredibly diverse. Alongside clothes, accessories and shoes, it includes items from collaborations with hundreds of brands, such as bicycles, surfboards, furniture and homeware. The archive also features pieces from Paul’s personal collection, showcasing his love for collecting unique objects and artworks.
A Vision for the Future
The turning point came when two spaces opened up in Paul Smith’s Nottingham office. The goal was to create a bespoke archive solution that would preserve the collection and safeguard Paul Smith’s legacy for the future. It needed to provide improved conservation, make better use of space, and ensure the archive was more accessible to both staff and visitors.
To bring this vision to life, Alice knew she needed more than just shelving. She needed a trusted partner to design a system that could store the vast, ever-growing collection in a way that was accessible, stylish, and built to last. With no big team behind her, Alice needed a partner that could guide her smoothly through the process. “I wanted to work with a well-established company,” she explains. “Bruynzeel seemed to have the expertise, and I liked their experience working with collections of all kinds.”
The Solution
The Big Transformation
Over the next few months, Alice worked closely with the Bruynzeel team to design a tailored storage system. Upstairs, a manual mobile racking system was installed to store garments, shoes, and accessories, the heart of the collection. Downstairs, an electronic racking system was set up to meet strict insurance requirements, linked to fire alarms and sprinklers for added safety. This system houses press cuttings from the 1970s to the present, as well as swatch books, sketches, photographs and boxes of paperwork and objects.
The difference is night and day. Today, the Paul Smith Archive is a beautifully designed space, carefully curated to reflect the creativity of its collection. “We deliberately left the garments open and hanging on rails,” Alice shares. “It’s about balancing conservation with accessibility. Compared to how it was before, the new archive is clean, temperature-controlled, free from humidity, and lit with LED lights instead of natural light. It’s also easy to navigate, everything it wasn’t before”
Balancing Style and functionality
The visual appeal was equally important. The team kept the storage neutral in color to allow the colorful garments and objects to shine. “It looks very slick and professional,” Alice says, “and everyone who visits is impressed.” Even Paul Smith, known for his love of pattern and color, opted for a minimalist look. Brightly colored labels now mark each aisle, a playful touch that perfectly balances functionality and design.
The Result
The result is an archive that’s no longer tucked away but proudly showcased. Designers use it regularly as a source of inspiration. Marketing teams explore its treasures for campaigns. Students are now welcomed to study the collection, fostering a new generation of creatives. The company is now proud to share this extensive and vibrant archive, one that will continue growing, inspiring, and telling the story of Paul Smith’s legacy for years to come. “We're very happy with the end results. The system is strong, sturdy, and looks great”. For Alice, this is just the beginning. “It’s a continually evolving collection,” she says. And with its new home, the possibilities are endless.
