Microzine boss joins The Lab

Lee will oversee strategic direction at Lab Boutique in Derby

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Microzine founder and sportswear guru Chris Lee has been appointed creative director of The Lab, a sports and fashion retail concept launched by sportswear veteran Michael Guest.

Lee will initially oversee the strategic direction of the Lab Boutique store in the Westfield Derby shopping centre.

The store stocks brands including Playboy, Ringspun, Boxfresh, Religion, Chunk and Reebok on a concession-type basis. The brands select the stock to go in store and retain ownership of the product, but Lab Boutique is responsible for staffing and shopfits.

Guest, a former managing director of Allsports, said: "We want to refine the model before expanding. There is room to improve the brand mix. Chris is a unique talent and comes with a huge amount of experience and outstanding contacts."

As well as the Lab Boutique in Derby, there are also Lab Sport stores in Chester, Bristol, Kingston upon Thames in Surrey and Basildon in Essex.

There are also plans to launch an extreme sports and womenswear fascia.

Lee was previously at DKNY, Reebok and now-defunct indie Wade Smith in Liverpool. He will continue to run his two Microzine fashion and lifestyle stores in London and Liverpool.