Brand Beckham: How David and Victoria became a global powerhouse
How did the England footballer and 'Posh Spice' pop star become an internationally fashionable power couple?
‘Whether you’re a soccer fan or Spice Girls enthusiast, this interesting name is bound to get your attention!’ enthused thebump.com. ‘It originates from the surname, recognised worldwide, of power couple David and Victoria! No one can deny the near-royal status of the entrepreneurial duo.’ In 1995 fewer than five newborns were named Beckham in the US and just 53 sets of parents opted for the unusual moniker Harper. By 2015, 900 baby Beckhams made their way into the world in the States, along with more than 10,000 Harpers. TIME reported the latter’s sudden appearance at number 10 in the most common baby name list as ‘strange, since practically nobody was naming their baby girls Harper before 2000’. Its massive spike in popularity could have been explained by the resurgence of author Harper Lee ‘as a figure of cultural fascination’ but TIME also suggested, more realistically, that the then four-year-old daughter of David and Victoria Beckham might also have sparked the trend.
This ‘near-royal’ couple, to most, need no introduction. Victoria Adams married David Beckham in 1999, as showcased in the glossy pages of Hello! (who could forget the purple thrones?) and they have since had four children: sons Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz, followed by daughter Harper. The family patriarch: a footballer who played for Manchester United and England, so renowned worldwide that evidence (and rumours) of misbehaviour – on and off the pitch – have not buried his career. The matriarch of the Beckham dynasty: a theatre-school kid who once upon a time auditioned for an pop group and metamorphosed from Posh Spice and Queen WAG into a credible designer with a burgeoning fashion and beauty empire.
The Beckhams on the cover of the August 2007 issue of W magazine. Image: Shutterstock
David and Victoria Beckham at the 2019 GQ Men Of The Year Awards in London. Image: Shutterstock/Fred Duval
The former’s life was explored in Netflix’s 2023 four-part Beckham documentary – in which David explains, to the millions who watched it, “I knew my career [as a sportsman] was going to end at some point and I wanted to have a career after football.” The success of part one was such that the streaming giant has announced another docu-series focusing on the other half of this power couple: “Victoria Beckham is on a journey to build a fashion empire and now, fans will be able to see the story behind it all.” So how exactly did this Leytonstone-born boy and Hertfordshire girl come to play such a significant role in popular culture, with an influence that spilled over beyond pop music and sport into fashion trends, hair styles and even baby names?
For Victoria, the story began in the middle of 1996. This writer turned 11 as Wannabe was climbing the charts and the world was about to be engulfed by Spice Mania. By the end of that summer, five young women would henceforth be forever known as Sporty, Scary, Baby, Ginger and Posh, and their individual ‘looks’ were – and still are – copied by quintets of girls in every corner of the globe. The ’90s ‘Posh’ ensemble might not have been refined in the high fashion sense but it certainly felt more sophisticated than leopard print, Union Jack minidresses and bubble-gum pink. From the start, Victoria’s public identity was associated with her clothes, and class.
Victoria Beckham at the press conference to introduce David Beckham as the newest member of the Los Angeles Galaxy, 2007. Image: Shutterstock/S Bukley
David Beckham at the 2010 Teen Choice Awards in LA. Image: Shutterstock/Joe Seer
Despite global stardom and record sales, the Spice Girls’ heyday was short-lived. Geri Halliwell left the band two years after they catapulted to fame and the Spice foursome disbanded in 2001. By then, however, Victoria had already started sowing the seeds for a career that involved no singing whatsoever. She had walked for Maria Grachvogel at London Fashion Week in 2000, inducing a collective gasp from the audience. Why? “This was the first indication Victoria was interested in fashion,” explains journalist Liz Jones. “A celebrity transfusion was sorely needed, as London Fashion Week then wasn’t what it is today. This fabulous collaboration was a first.” It would be eight years until Victoria launched her own label but, believes Jones, “the die was cast that night. She loved that world and wanted it to love her back.”
Between then and 2008, as her pop career fizzled out, Victoria kept busy on the fashion front. An ambassador for D&G, the face of Rocawear, VB Rocks jeans for Rock & Republic, runway appearances for Roberto Cavalli, her own denim label, DVB Style. Ah – the ‘D’. The crucial component to super-stardom: husband David Beckham, who happened to have his own meteoric moment in the summer of 1996; that goal from the halfway line in the first game of the season, which was so pivotal that it opens the Beckham Netflix doc.
The Beckhams in Los Angeles, 2007. Image: Shutterstock/Everett Collection
David and Victoria Beckham at the launch of the Beckham Signature Fragrance in New York, 2008
A Manchester United footballer who burst onto the scene with such obvious talent was always going to be in the sights of brands the world over, given how famous the team is internationally. The fact that he was fit, good-looking and keen on fashion meant he was even more desirable. Nigel Reed of CBC Sports said, of Beckham’s career and celebrity status: “His brand is global, his appeal universal. He sparked debate and polarised opinion. But underneath the gloss he was, first and foremost, a very good footballer.”
The distinctive hairstyles Beckham sported throughout his career – including a ponytail, buzz cut and various mohawks – were widely covered in the media, and widely copied by a legion of fans. He was hailed, by the man who invented the term, the ultimate ‘metrosexual’ and Beckham has always embraced his LGBTQ+ fanbase, openly supporting gay media. GQ believes that Beckham’s era of experimentation in the 1990s – remember the silk bandanas and sarong? – ‘opened a dialogue for menswear mavericks that hadn’t previously been explored. Once known for pairing frosted tips with all-leather ‘fits, Becks’ wild styling eventually gave way to evolved, timeless looks that have come to define the tone of classic British style for a whole generation.’
And this start of this evolution, casting his net of aspirations well beyond the confines of the footballing world, neatly coincided with Beckham’s relationship with Victoria. Alex Ferguson bemoaned this, complaining “David was never a problem until he got married… from that moment, his life was never going to be the same”. And it wasn’t. It was spectacularly lucrative. Shortly after his transfer to Real in 2003, Beckham signed with Simon Fuller and 19 Entertainment, which already managed Victoria. Their profiles rocketed as their careers took off internationally and their relationship made them even more commercially valuable. We might have cringed at their matching outfits – double denim, all white, black leather – but let’s face it; Nineties and Noughties fashion in the UK was distinctive, yes, but very far from chic. Everyone was talking about David and Victoria Beckham.
Victoria Beckham the label launched in 2008. Known initially for its dresses, today the brand’s offering includes ready-to-wear, footwear, eyewear, beauty and leather goods. ‘It forms the basis of the modern woman’s wardrobe; versatile and wearable yet rooted in modernity with a sophisticated ease,’ says the label of itself. Certain cogs in the DVB wheels ensured that, unlike a lot of celebrity labels, this fashion line didn’t die an early death. Her fame, and money. His fame, and more money. Their inherent style.
Hear me out on this last one. A Harper’s Bazaar editor reported that, to no-one’s surprise, “the fashion set were very dubious about Victoria doing her own line. She was a pop star, and I don’t think particularly revered for her style.” Perhaps not ‘revered’ by the fashion set, but many of her potential customers – who had grown up with VB and grown out of chunky belts, corsets and denim micro minis at the same time – were already team Posh. And Mr Beckham, for his part, was already well on the way to being admired for his own ‘look’.
The Times deemed Victoria’s debut collection ‘very impressive [and] accomplished, with not a single dud’. Within three years, Victoria Beckham had scooped Designer Brand of the Year at the British Fashion Awards. Belinda White, writing for The Daily Telegraph at the time, noted that the transition from WAG to designer had been more successful than most had predicted: ‘Victoria has gathered a significant celebrity following and won over the scathing fashion pack who now clamour for a ticket to her show’.
Victoria kept her fashion profile high while growing her label and waiting for her now-undisputed design talent to be recognised. She is credited with having popularised Roland Mouret’s 'moon dress'; she was the face of Marc Jacobs’ Spring 2008 collection; and she graced the cover of British Vogue in April that same year (and many international covers since). Her last Spice Girls appearance was at the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony. Watched by 900 million people around the globe, it was an immaculately chosen opportunity to promote Brand Beckham, while delighting legions of Spice Girls fans past and present – Wannabe has now had more than a billion streams on Spotify.
As Harper’s Bazaar went on to point out, 'Beckham surprised everyone. Fashion is a snobby place… and there’s little that the industry hates more than a celebrity-turned-designer, especially one that was previously defined as a WAG. Rumour has it that the woman formerly known as Posh Spice was repeatedly turned away from fashion shows. But sometimes, the greatest part of being underestimated is that the rise is all the more impressive.'
David and Victoria Beckham at the 2008 ESPY Awards. Image: Shutterstock/S Bukley
The Beckhams at the Met Gala in 2008. Image: Shutterstock/Everett Collection
Fashion journalist Alexander Fury, in considering how Victoria had successfully made the transition from novelty to respected designer, concluded that the brand's sales were down to the appeal of the designs themselves, not the celebrity association. Despite the calibre of product, though, it has taken 15 years for the business to be 'on a path to profitability', as reported in December last year. Revenue increased, while the group’s losses narrowed, wrote The Guardian; 'The Beckhams and NEO [the private equity group invested £30m in 2017 for an undisclosed but significant minority stake] have continued to pour money into the business as they press ahead with their turnaround plan. This has included a successful show at Paris Fashion Week as well as a foray into leather goods, accessories and beauty.'
Victoria Beckham’s top-selling items in 2023 included a midi dress, worn by the queen of Spain and Kendall Jenner, which accounted for one in every 10 online sales that year. Marie Leblanc, the chief executive of Victoria Beckham Ltd, was pleased by “another very strong year of progress: we continue to see a healthy growth trajectory as we look to establish Victoria Beckham as a global luxury house.” Beauty and fragrance are booming and VB herself is playing a bigger than ever part in its promotion, especially on social media. This has, undoubtedly, allowed brand Beckham to soar. The five older family members have 144 million Instagram followers between them, allowing them to post and promote to the masses as often as they like.
David’s popularity shows no sign of slowing and he has chosen not to silo himself in a glossy luxury market. Yes, he’s the face of high-end suits (Hugo Boss) and watches (Tudor) but he also promotes coffee machines, air fryers, mattresses and crisps, while alos finding time for philanthropical activities as a Unicef ambassador.
Two years ago he sold the majority stake in DB Ventures, which manages his endorsement deals, to Authentic Brands Group in a multi-million pound deal. “David is a superstar talent with an incredible global brand reach and a highly influential presence,” says Jamie Salter, founder, chairman and CEO of ABG. “David and his team have built an enterprise that spans sports, entertainment, lifestyle and luxury, and we see significant opportunities to scale his brand and expand it into new verticals.”
We don't see the style influence of Brand Beckham slowing down anytime soon, especially with the children of the family growing up and developing their own style, and fanbases. This writer remembers when Brooklyn Beckham was born; in 2022 the very same Brooklyn was groom at the glossiest cleebrity wedding of the year, marrying American heiress Nicola Peltz in nuptials said to have cost around $4 million. If David and Victoria have anything to do with it, there's every likelihood the name Beckham will be in the press – and baby name charts – for decades to come.
