The Complete Guide to Vintage Burberry

Few coats are as recognisable as a Burberry trench. The house built its name on weatherproof cloth and military tailoring, and more than a century later those same pieces read as clearly as ever, which is exactly why Burberry holds up so well as vintage.

This guide covers what matters when you buy vintage Burberry: the history behind the pieces, how to read the labels, how the check and the cloth should look, how the coats fit, and how to place a garment in time. Read it start to finish, or use the chapters to jump to what you need.

A short history

Thomas Burberry opened his first shop in Basingstoke, Hampshire, in 1856, at the age of 21. His focus was practical: clothing that stood up to the British weather. In 1879 he invented gabardine, a tightly woven, water-resistant and breathable cloth that changed outerwear, and became the foundation of everything that followed.

The Tielocken coat of 1912 was the direct predecessor of the trench. During the First World War, Burberry developed the trench coat for British officers, with the epaulettes, D-ring belt, storm flap and double-breasted front still recognisable today. The check, first used as a trench lining in the 1920s, came later, and only became a visible house signature decades after that.

Spotting the real thing

Burberry is one of the most reproduced labels in vintage, and the check is the easiest part to copy. The reliable tells are elsewhere: in the wording on the label, the way the pattern is cut, and the weight of the cloth.

• Label wording. The company dropped the “s” from its name in 1999. A piece reading “Burberrys” or “Burberrys of London” predates that change; “Burberry” belongs to 1999 or later. It places a garment in an era at a glance.
• Check alignment. On genuine pieces the check continues correctly across seams and pockets. Matching a pattern across every seam costs fabric and labour, so copies often let it jump or shift.
• The cloth. Genuine gabardine has a distinct density; it feels substantial, even slightly stiff when new. A “vintage” trench that drapes like soft cotton is a mismatch.

Our full breakdown is in Spotting Fake Burberry: 7 things to check. Every branded piece we sell is authenticated through LegitApp before it reaches the shop, so the guesswork is handled before a garment is listed.

The lines explained

Burberry has used several sub-labels over the years, and the wording tells you where a piece sits and roughly when it was made.

• Burberrys / Burberrys of London. The older branding, generally consistent with pieces made before the 1999 name change.
• Burberry London. The tailored, classic ready-to-wear line.
• Burberry Brit. The more casual, everyday line.
• Burberry Prorsum. The runway and top-tier line.

The London, Brit and Prorsum lines were consolidated under a single Burberry label from around 2015, so a piece carrying one of those names generally predates that change.

Shop the edit: Vintage Burberry →

Sizing & fit

Vintage sizing rarely matches modern labels, and a trench coat is cut deliberately roomy. It is designed to be worn over a jacket. Cuts have also shifted across eras. This is why every piece is listed with flat measurements rather than the size on the label.

Before you buy, measure a coat you already own that fits the way you like and compare it to the listed measurements: chest, shoulders, length and sleeve. It is the most reliable way to buy vintage outerwear without surprises.

A well-made trench was built to last a lifetime. Many vintage examples are only part-way through theirs.

Hazendonk Vintage

Dating the labels

The brand label and care tag are the clearest way to place a Burberry piece in time. Use the framework below as a starting point, and confirm the finer details against a trusted reference before treating a date as certain.

Era	Label detail	What to look for
Before 1999	“Burberrys” / “Burberrys of London”	The trailing “s” in the wordmark
1999–c.2015	“Burberry”, with London / Brit / Prorsum lines	Sub-line naming on the label
c.2015 onward	Single unified “Burberry” label	Consolidated branding, modern care symbols

Pieces worth knowing

Some Burberry pieces are worth seeking out for their design and longevity: the gabardine trench, the Nova check scarf, the check-lined car coat, and the house’s shirts and knitwear among them. Each turns up regularly in good vintage condition. Browse the current selection for men and women, or see the wider high-end selection.

How to style it

The strength of vintage Burberry is restraint. A trench over tailoring or over denim, a check scarf as the only pattern in an outfit. The pieces are designed to lead quietly. Keep the rest simple and let one strong piece carry the look. For more outerwear, see our vintage coats.

Sources

1. Burberry · company history: founding (1856), gabardine (1879), the Tielocken (1912), the trench coat and the Check.
2. Burberry: the 1999 name change from “Burberrys” to “Burberry”, and the consolidation of the London, Brit and Prorsum lines (c. 2015).