the female-founded brand made by women, for women.

Accessible womenswear brand Ro&Zo was established by co-founders Rosie Bowden, Zoe de Abreu and CEO Rachel Heather in the aftermath of the pandemic to fill a gap in the market left by the closures of a series of major high street brands.

Already stocked by major retailers including Next and John Lewis, Ro&Zo creates responsible, trend-led pieces for women spanning many age groups and sizes (6/20), leveraging decades of manufacturing experience with a strong focus on quality.

Ro&Zo’s approach is unique in that it draws on its significant experience as a supplier and buyer for major high street brands, transitioning from manufacturer to brand rather than vice versa. This gives the business a detailed understanding of garments, the high street and what customers want.

This round of investment will help Ro&Zo drive its direct-to-consumer business by raising awareness of its brand, developing its operations capability and scaling the business in the UK. As part of this expansion, Ro&Zo is looking to launch its first high street store to provide an experience-driven, high-quality omnichannel experience. It is using data to find the best location suited to its customer profile.

Today there is a strong demand in the market for accessible, quality fashion that can be versatile while still being stylish. Ro&Zo’s styling is about attitude not age and we believe in supporting the next generation of businesswomen. We have established a strong understanding of our customers and are excited to gain this funding from Pembroke VCT to grow and better serve their needs.

Rosie Bowden co-founder of Ro&Zo

In these unprecedented retailing times, it was going to take an extraordinary fashion brand for Pembroke VCT to invest in this sector. When we met Rosie, Zoe and Rachel we realised they had done something unique – they had turned their wealth of experience in supply chain and eye for design into a new omnichannel fashion player. The business has performed strongly in major retail stores and we look forward to working with the team to drive its DTC offer and launch its first physical store.”

Andrew Wolfson CEO of Pembroke Investment Managers LLP

”