A BRADFORD-born award-winning designer has been appointed Chief Creative Officer at Burberry. 

Daniel Lee, a former pupil of Dixons City Academy, will join the iconic fashion house on Monday, October 3. He will be based at Burberry’s headquarters in London and report to Chief Executive Officer, Jonathan Akeroyd.

His appointment follows the departure of Riccardo Tisci.

Daniel said: “I am honoured to join Burberry as Chief Creative Officer. 

"Together with the team, we will write the exciting next chapter for this legendary British luxury brand, continuing its historic heritage and building on Riccardo’s legacy.

"I am very excited to be returning to London, a city that champions pioneering creativity and that continues to inspire me.”

In a statement today, Burberry, which has manufacturing sites in Cross Hills in Keighley as well as in Castleford, said: "Born and raised in Bradford, Daniel is an award-winning designer and one of the most exciting British creative talents of his generation.

"From 2018 to 2021, Daniel served as Creative Director at Bottega Veneta, where he helped reinvigorate the Italian luxury brand. He was previously Director of ready-to-wear design at Celine, which he joined in 2012, and he has also worked at Maison Margiela, Balenciaga and Donna Karan.

"In his new role, Daniel will oversee all Burberry collections. He will present his debut runway collection at London Fashion Week in February 2023."

CEO Jonathan Akeroyd said: “I am delighted that Daniel is joining Burberry as our new Chief Creative Officer. Daniel is an exceptional talent with a unique understanding of today’s luxury consumer and a strong record of commercial success, and his appointment reinforces the ambitions we have for Burberry.

"I am excited about working closely with him and I am confident he will have the impact we are aiming for in this next phase, supported by our talented and experienced teams.”

Speaking to the ‘In the Studio’ podcast for the BBC World Service in 2020, Daniel touched on his life in Bradford and how his future career path started to take shape. 

He said: “As a kid, my nanna, she was someone I spent a lot of time with when I was growing up and I spent a lot of time at her house, kind of making things on the carpet on the floor, cutting up, making a mess.

“She was very patient, and I guess creativity almost started then, it was almost this kind of distraction, this outlet."

It was a visit to Bradford’s iconic fabric emporium Bombay Stores that saw Daniel create his first outfit for a school project.

“I think the tutor at the time was very proud of my outfit and he was displaying it all around the school,” he told the programme.