Topshop braced for Moss collection rush

Shoppers will queue outside its flagship Oxford Street store where the fashion range will debut.

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Moss is rumoured to be promoting the London preview event by posing as a mannequin in the shop window.

Topshop will limit purchases to five pieces per person during the four-hour launch.

The chain will close its Oxford Street store at 5.30pm today then reopen from 8pm until midnight for an 'exclusive first glimpse' of the collection.

Batches of shoppers will be let in to browse the Kate Moss designs for a maximum 20 minutes during the four-hour evening launch.

They may try on a maximum eight garments and buy only five pieces per person to prevent the clothes being quickly sold off on eBay, Topshop said.

The same purchase rules will apply when the Kate Moss collection launches in 225 stores nationwide on Tuesday morning.

The Croydon-born supermodel was reportedly paid £3 million to create the fashion range.

It is made up of 50 designs priced from £12 for a vest top to £150 for a cropped leather jacket.

Other items in the collection include skinny jeans, one-shoulder mini dresses and T-shirts with the letter K woven into their designs.

The collection has been criticised by media in the US, with the New York Post describing the designs as: ".. like Kate copying a lot of other people's stuff Kate's worn before."

But Topshop has ordered huge quantities of the clothes in anticipation of high customer demand.

A spokeswoman for the chain said: "New drops will go into stores every few weeks. If we do experience massive sales there may be some things that sell out but most of the things have been bought in large volumes.

"The idea is that there will be drops all the time so that the excitement factor is always there."

Laura Weir, senior reporter for fashion industry bible Drapers, predicted Tuesday's national launch would cause a "shopper frenzy" on UK high streets.

"The first drop of commercially-priced product will sell out in record time because like her or not, a bulk of young female shoppers in the UK want to buy into the Kate Moss look and what she represents," she said.

"Part of the cache surrounding a celeb tie-up is that historically they're available in very short bursts, keeping merchandise coveted.

"However this tie up is rumoured to be a two year deal, so post launch it will be interesting to see how longevity is maintained."

A high summer collection of Kate Moss designs will follow at Topshop stores in June.