Manic Jetsetter Matthew Williamson to Debut Men’s Wear & E-Commerce

British designer Matthew Williamson, beloved by Vogue and H&M (with whom he did a diffusion line last fall) alike, is about to be a very busy man. Not only is the designer adding men's wear, which will debut in February to be sold exclusively at Harrods in addition to Williamson's namesake boutiques; he's venturing out digitally speaking as well with the launch of a brand spanking new e-commerce site. The latter will include "every piece from the most recent collection available for the public to buy online," says Elle UK, granting access to Williamson's vibrant, pattern-heavy creations to consumers around the globe. The move makes sense, seeing as Williamson's designs themselves are more often than not inspired by his worldwide travels, as he recently told the Telegraph.

In response to how many holidays Williamson will take in a year, the designer says: “as many as possible. I’m out of the country at least once a month, exploring new places for work as well as pleasure, and returning to favourite haunts such as Mykonos and Ibiza for holidays. This year, I’ve been to Cape Town, Tulum in Mexico, Cuba, Rio de Janeiro, Turks and Caicos and New York.” Not too shabby considering he still manages to put out critically acclaimed collections season after season. Although these days Williamson is all about the five-star experience (think dining at the new Nobu in Mykonos’ new Belvedere hotel or renting private villas at Amanyara in Turks and Caicos), it hasn’t all be first class travel. “When I began my business, 12 years ago, and had just started to travel to India. I remember landing in Delhi for the first time with £60 in my wallet and no hotel,” he recalls. “We found somewhere in Nizammudin for about £20 a night and didn’t sleep a wink. The room was like a prison cell, the linen was scratchy, and it was freezing.” As for his best hotel experience: “The penthouse of the Atlantis in Dubai, where I spent 24 hours last year. It is utterly decadent. A gold mosaic lift takes you to your room, which has more marble than you can imagine, mosaics on all the walls, and a huge banqueting table in the middle. There are even peacocks in the courtyard outside. Too much to live in, but amazing for a party.”