Pip Durell, Founder of With Nothing Underneath, Shares a Glimpse Into Her 9-5
The brains behind the cult British shirting brand lifts the lid on her stylish world
In the crowded world of modern womenswear, few brands have managed to carve out such a clear identity as With Nothing Underneath. Founded in 2017 by former fashion editor Pip Durell, the label built its reputation on perfectly cut, endlessly wearable shirts—and, before long, found fans in the likes of Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, helping to bring it firmly into the spotlight.
The idea was simple at first. While working in fashion, Durell noticed a gap in the market for well-made, well-priced women’s shirts—pieces that were reliable, flattering and easy to wear. What began as a tightly edited capsule has since grown, largely in response to customer demand, into a full ready-to-wear wardrobe that spans everything from T-shirts and tailored trousers to blazers, knits and outerwear. The result is a brand built around real wardrobes and real lives, designed to work just as well on busy mornings as it does at weekends.
Here, With Nothing Underneath's founder and creative director Pip Durell opens up about life behind the scenes of her nine-to-five—from office must-haves and evening rituals, to creative inspiration and the lessons learned while building one of Britain’s fastest-growing fashion brands.
I always start my mornings with... As much water as I can manage, a banana, and the adrenaline of the toddler/dog nursery drop.
How I get dressed really depends on the day... Generally it's some tailored trousers, trainers, a t-shirt and a blazer. Easy and failsafe.
My biggest office essential is... A good vibe! I am in the office four or five days a week so I like good energy, the radio on, sugary snacks. All the good stuff.
My favourite post-work ritual is... A bath with Oliverum oil and an audiobook. I am obsessed with the bath—I must have been a fish in a former life. Then, my LED mask in bed before copious amounts of face moisturiser and my If Only If nightie. I literally can’t sleep in anything else any more, they are so soft and light!
I find design inspiration from... Everywhere! I think living somewhere like England is just an endless richness of ideas and beauty. Our architecture, landscape, literature—it all plays a part. I am the Creative Director so at the beginning of the season I sit down with our design team and we go over the mood, concepts and general brief as to what we want from the season—and they go from there.
The idea for With Nothing Underneath was born from... When I was working at Vogue and I couldn’t find any good women’s shirts that were well-made and-well priced. Meanwhile, the men’s market was overflowing... It seemed like a gap to me.
The best thing about my job is... The team. I love the people I get to work with to create our imagery, the creatives and interesting people I get to meet along the way.
The biggest pinch-me moment so far was... Last year, when we were named in the Sunday Times Top 100 fastest-growing companies in the country. It was an incredible moment. For a truly organic start-up to reach this point was really unbelievable.
My biggest career achievement to date? I think it was landing the job as Jewellery Editor at Tatler when I was 25—a crazy but fun time.
The most important business lesson I've learned is... Not every thought has to be a feeling.
The business has changed beyond recognition over the past few years... For three years it was just me in my flat, and now we have three (about to be four!) stores, a big team and so many ideas still to fulfil.
Currently, I'm working on... Launching Spring/Summer, so I am traveling a lot to shoot the collection and show it to the press. Tomorrow is a trip to NYC and then we will host the UK press day at our brand new-store on Marylebone High Street. And of course, AW26 is already in the works!
As for what's next? We are hopefully opening another store outside of London at the start of summer… Stay tuned!
