AIS pleased to present Philip Horner, UK Country Manager, Mey Bodywear with The Lifetime Achievement Award at INDX Intimate Apparel
On 28th July 2024 at the INDX National Intimate Apparel Lingerie Show, Associated Independent Stores (AIS) presented Philip Horner with the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognising his commitment and achievements within the intimate apparel industry over the last 30 plus years.
“‘I was really surprised! I don’t do anything different from anyone else in the industry, so it was very much unexpected. However, it is really nice to be recognised in this way” Philip commented. He went on to express his gratefulness for his customers, because “without customers you don’t have a brand, and you can’t be an agent.” He continued “They have always been a great support to me, and in turn I do my best to support them.”
Philip believes collaboration is key and the INDX shows give brands a great opportunity to showcase their collections to a wider audience of buyers.
James Crabtree, Head of Fashion at AIS and part of the expert team delivering INDX shows presented the award. James said “I am absolutely delighted that we had the opportunity to celebrate and honour Philip, whose career has been dedicated to excellence within the intimate apparel category. At AIS we believe in the entrepreneurial spirit , the passion of retail, of independence, and creativity, and we believe Philip has delivered that throughout his career and played an important part in helping our AIS members an our INDX visitors thrive.
With 33 years in the industry, he has worked for a many well-known brands. He began his career at the Canadian hosiery company Scantihose, before moving to Falke. He then turned his head to the lingerie business when he was head hunted by Robert Looker Sales Director of Italian brand Lovable, which included the Loveable brand. This was then taken over by Sarah Lee, with brands including Shock Absorber and Playtex. He was with the business during the era of the ‘Wonderbra’ and loved his time at the iconic brand, staying for 15 years, before becoming a self-employed agent in 2011.
As an Agent, Philip worked with brands such as Vanilla, Esprit, and Mey. He fell in love with Mey and took a gamble by deciding to focus solely on the brand – “it was like going home, Mey reminded me of Playtex – lovely people, and a lovely company to work for.” He grew it from an unknown brand to a popular lingerie, nightwear, and loungewear brand; recognised as a finalist for their loungewear range in the STARS Underlines Awards several years running. “It’s like my baby” he commented.
With his retirement on the 31st December 2024 fast approaching, Philip is looking forward to taking some time to travel, and ”drive off into the sunset” in his MG-TF.
AIS wish him all the best for the future.
Want to know more about AIS? Visit www.aistores.co.uk
