‘Sales are what is going to keep this industry going’: Save Australian designers with Vogue Fashion Relief
Shoppers are rallying behind Australian fashion designers during Vogue Fashion Relief. And an unexpected trend has emerged in the wake of coronavirus.
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Shoppers are rallying behind Australian fashion designers, in a bid to secure their futures during Vogue Fashion Relief.
Local designers Aje, camilla and marc, and Carla Zampatti have praised the “enormous response” from shoppers during the Vogue Australia-backed initiative, to help brands affected by the coronavirus-fuelled retail downturn.
Camilla Freeman-Topper, of camilla and marc, said shoppers had snapped up activewear and leisurewear during the two-day sale, which started today, and runs until Sunday.
“We’ve had an enormous response to our leisurewear, activewear and knitwear collections as customers search for items that bring comfort and warmth during these times,” Ms Freeman-Topper said.
“What we’re also seeing is an increase in our tops and tailoring categories as our customers refine their wardrobes to cater for working from home.”
Ms Freeman-Topper said a recurring trend was “work up top, leisurewear down bottom”, as women juggled home life with work and video calls.
“Overall what we’re seeing is women are taking comfort in a paired back wardrobe of classic and timeless pieces that can support them during these times and make getting dressed in the morning simple,” she added.
For Aje, top-sellers during Vogue Fashion Relief included the Coda eyelet dress – which had an extensive waiting list before it launched as part of the sale – as well as its Overture midi dress.
“(Those styles) are proving to be most popular in the statement category. Consumers must be planning their future event looks,” an Aje spokeswoman said.
Also selling fast during Fashion Relief were Aje’s signature logo tees and its new season Rigby knit jumpers.
For Cara Zampatti, the bestsellers were a dressier style, as shoppers looked forward to times when they could wear evening looks, post-pandemic.
Among the pieces selling fast were the off-the-shoulder “Valentina” dress and “Luminescence” coat.
AUSSIE FASHION AT ‘CRISIS POINT’
The Australian fashion industry has described being at “crisis point”, with store closures and dwindling sales fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
At a time when designers should have been preparing their now-cancelled Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia runway shows, many are struggling to stay afloat, meaning serious concerns for their futures.
Staff lay-offs, retail sales being almost ‘non-existent’, and major retailers cancelling or postponing orders “indefinitely” are among the harsh realities being experienced by local designers, Australian Fashion Council notes.
So how can Australian designers survive this retail downturn?
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Aje chief executive Adrian Norris described the coronavirus-fuelled retail crisis as “the hardest three weeks of my life – of my career”.
“It has ripped everyone’s plans, just torn them up. It has come so close to destroying really great businesses,” Mr Norris said in an exclusive interview with News Corp.
He said the Aje team – based in Sydney – had been “strategising, trying to figure out ways to overcome it”.
“Now, we have to see if the plans we have put in place are enough to keep it going,” he said.
“A lot of people are sitting there thinking whether their business will survive.”
A reassuring sign for Aje is the strength of its online store, which is “still doing the numbers we need it to”.
“That that nowhere near makes up from the loss of income from 22 stores,” Mr Norris said, of Aje’s move to shut its retail stores for the time being.
“It’s a really precarious balance. All we can do is ask everyone, please, if you were going to shop in a shop, buy it online and it will allow your favourite fashion designer to survive.”
As for Aje’s warehouse and shipping operations, Mr Norris said the brand had enacted strict hygiene and social distancing measures.
‘PUT BACK AT LEAST A YEAR’
Matteau designers Ilona Hamer and Peta Heinsen said their business had been “put back at least a year” under the current crisis.
“We have recently grown our team to take on these new opportunities and now we are doing everything we can to retain our staff with significantly reduced cashflow,” the co-founders said in a statement to News Corp.
Bassike co-founder Deborah Sams said the brand had shut its 10 stores in Australia and the United States, meaning “significant changes for our team for an unknown period of time”.
“Inventory accumulation at retail and wholesale will become a problem, therefore we need the support of major Australian and US retailers to assist with taking product that has been ordered, or we will be greatly impacted,” Ms Sams said
“Like everyone in business we are sitting in a place of uncertainty of when this is going to end, or how our business and industry will be impacted.”
VOGUE FASHION RELIEF
Aje, Matteau and Bassike are among the brands involved in Vogue Fashion Relief, a 48-hour online shopping event to support Australian designers (on from April 4).
“Our retail industry is at crisis point with many businesses, including the Australian designer community, particularly hard hit,” Vogue editor-in-chief Edwina McCann said.
“We will get through this but we risk losing many of our household names before we reach the other side.”
“Stores are closing and online orders are not equating to boutique sales. Many retailers have cancelled their new season orders, leaving Australian designers exposed financially and with an excess of stock.
“This is why we are coming together to support our local designers with Vogue Fashion Relief. The initiative will adapt our successful online shopping night platform to focus on Australian designers, offering a 48-hour sale in support of their small businesses.”
For more on Vogue Fashion Relief, see vogue.com.au/fashionrelief.
Originally published as ‘Sales are what is going to keep this industry going’: Save Australian designers with Vogue Fashion Relief
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