The Stories Behind Luxury Brand Names

What’s in a name? Well now you can find out what’s behind the names of some high-end luxury brands such as Saint Laurent, Prada and Burberry. i-D sets out to shed some light on the histories of these luxurious labels and where their humble (or not) roots come from. Read an excerpt below and click through to learn more about why Saint Laurent dropped Yves, who Lifshitz is, and what Acne Studios actually stands for.

Burberry
Founded in 1856 when Thomas Burberry opened his own shop in Hampshire, “Burberry” actually was the store’s original name. Because so many customers around the world kept referring to it as “Burberrys of London,” the company switched to “Burberrys.” When the brand’s Knight Logo was later developed in 1901, the Latin word “Prorsum,” meaning “forward,” was added to the trademark, and has since become the name of the house’s high-fashion division headed up today by Christopher Bailey.