High-street labels are known for being chic and cheap but Topshop is going for cutting edge rather than cut-price.

While some of its peers are trimming prices, Topshop and its male equivalent Topman are counting on statement pieces to give customers more bang for their buck.

The way to boost sales is to create attention-seeking pieces at the same price point, Topshop London's head of design, Jacqui Markham, 32, told Urban when she was in town for the launch of the Ion Orchard store.

'Customers are not going to spend lavishly so they want their money to get them a gorgeous, head-turning piece,' she said.

'There are so many high-street brands that offer basic pieces. Topshop does not want to be the same.'

Expect more tight-fitting jackets with edgy sequinned shoulder pads, outlandish leopard print leggings and snug tops with a metallic sheen.

Founded in 1964, the British fast-fashion label was the first high-street retailer to be featured during London Fashion Week when it presented an in-house collection in 2005.

Topman, created in 1978, is also pushing the envelope.

Its spring/summer 2010 collection flaunts bright mustard-coloured knitted cardigans and skinny jeans that are so tight they look nothing short of male leggings.

Gordon Richardson, 56, creative director of Topman, said: 'Our spring collection is all about reinventing the male silhouette and showing off the curves of the male form.'

Collaborations with cutting-edge designers and style icons are another way Topshop provides more value.

Take its collaboration with British designer Christopher Kane, featuring skinny models clad in studded leggings.

The collection sold out at the New York branch just a day after it was launched last September and more than 100 shoppers queued outside Topshop's flagship store in London to get their hands on Kane's designs.

Singapore saw the same madness too.

At the launch on Oct 1 at the Ion Orchard outlet, Christopher Kane alligator T-shirt dresses (above) and studded leather handbags flew off the shelves within all of 10minutes.

'By bringing the latest designers on board, fashionistas are able to flaunt a gorgeous branded item without sacrificing their monthly salary. It brings high fashion to the masses,' said Markham.

These tie-ups, she added, boost the Topshop brand image while differentiating it from other high-street labels.

'We are just out to give the masses what they want,' she said. 'If they look at Kate Moss as a fashion icon, we want to get her on board to design our stuff. If Christopher Kane is the fashion It Boy this season, then we will want him with us.'

These collaborators are given free rein to design the pieces and the team of 25 designers at Topshop offers suggestions only on how to make the pieces affordable.

'We look at the proposed design, analyse if the clothes will appeal to our customers and manufacture them at a price point they will be willing to pay.'

High-street labels might be known for creating carbon copies of what high-end boutiques are offering but Topshop and Topman try to break the mould.

In 2005, the Topshop Unique label was created. The label, said Markham, does not follow any trends.

'Instead, our designers create anything they jolly well fancy. And our customers love it.'

The brand's spring/summer 2010 surfwear-inspired collection, for instance, sees an eclectic mix of latex running shorts, baggy tees with a cartoon of a shark and knitted mid-riff baring tops.

'There is this devil-may-care attitude when it comes to creating stuff for the Unique brand. Our designers are limited only by their imagination,' she added.

'We are here to set the trends and this is what makes us different.'

This article was first published in Urban, The Straits Times.