End of an era for NZ fashion

Josie Steenhart talks to Kate Sylvester about closing her label and what is coming next.

Perhaps a little of the effervescence from our glasses of Huia X Kate Sylvester Blanc de Blancs bubbles got in our eyes.

But when the designer herself raises a toast to the room - packed with fans wearing their favourite pieces from across the label’s three decades - and declares “it’s a huge honour to have dressed you all for all these years”, there’s barely a dry eye inside her Cashel St Christchurch store.

We’re gathered, officially, for the launch of Kate’s new spring/summer 2024 range, ‘‘Into the Desert’’, but of course, it’s also now her last regular collection, with Kate and partner Wayne Conway announcing in April this year their decision to close the label.

“It's never been about shutting because the business isn't doing well enough,” says Sylvester. 

“That's not the issue, because we're a really strong brand. It's purely about the personal. For me, just the fact that, you know, for any business - especially medium-size and small businesses, whatever we are - it's tough, and it's really full-on.

“Like, a couple of years ago I took a four-week holiday and it's the longest holiday I've had in 30 years. And it has been 30 years of working incredibly hard.

“I realised that it's been absolutely fabulous and I've had a fantastic time, but it really felt like I'd been doing it for 30 years and I was in need of a change, just to take a break. Hence the decision.”

Ironically, it was that holiday that inspired both the collection now on the racks as well as the closure of Sylvester’s eponymous brand.

“We went into the Wadi Rum desert in Jordan and had two days in the desert, and it just blew my mind,” she recalls.

“It was such an incredible environment and everything about it was so inspirational and stimulating.

“And the collection came really effortlessly out of that - my response to the desert. So, the colours of the desert, the textures, the history ... it had sort of everything that goes into making a really great Kate Sylvester collection and it was just incredibly fun to put it together.

“It's such a positive collection to finish on, and I feel like it's a really classic Kate Sylvester collection."

Across the years ... Clockwise from top left:  A campaign shot from Kate Sylvester’s 2019 collection ‘‘Frances’’. For this collection, Te Papa gave  permission to use Frances Hodgkins’ artworks as prints;  a favourite, the Doily print makes its way down the runway for the first time during the 2000 show ‘‘Brighton Rock’’;  the Mariel trench dress, the cover of the final summer lookbook;    the Goldie dress from the finale collection ‘‘Into the Desert’’. Its colour was directly inspired from travels through the Wadi Rum desert; the Pheadra jacket  from the finale collection ‘‘Into the Desert’’, inspired by Kristen Scott Thomas’ artfully draped blanket in film The English Patient; the first campaign shot in 1997 after the Sister brand was pronounced dead and the Kate Sylvester brand was born. 

Final range of 'forever' pieces 

And while ‘‘Into the Desert’’ is done and dusted and dropping into stores over the next few months, Sylvester is not winding down just yet, instead turning to a final range, rifling through her extensive archives to create mini capsule collections - from sweatshirting featuring her iconic swan to dresses and pants in signature KS cuts - both to utilise leftover fabric, but also to ensure fresh stock for the six bricks-and-mortar stores until they each close.

“I've been cutting out tiny little runs of what we're calling the ‘Forever’ pieces,” she says.

“It's just a very personal, eclectic little collection - it's random but charming.

“We've got a bunch of stores that are staying open longer. Christchurch for example will be trading longer, and so they will be carrying these Forever pieces next year. Basically we don't know yet when we'll finally wind up next year, it really depends on stock.

‘‘We've got to get through the summer collection and then we've got these ‘Forever’ pieces, which I've really loved doing. It's been such a cute little project.”

It has also been a chance to return to a more hands-on approach, reminiscent of her early days in the trade and the beginnings of the business.

“I think what's been really gorgeous about doing the ‘Forever’ pieces is that it has pretty much gone full circle. When we started out, you know, I sewed all the garments - I haven't sewed all the ‘Forever’ pieces but I've been working direct, because we've reduced our team.

“So we're down to a really skeleton team in the work crew now, and I'm working with the cutters and the makers, I'm finding them their buttons and zips. They're tiny little runs, some of these things - I think the smallest one, we've done a lace dress and there's only six units. So it's like when we first started.

“It's lovely to be really hands-on again, which is how we started. It was just Wayne and I, and we made some clothes, you know, and he built all the counters and we painted the walls of the store and everything.

“I’ve been a designer all my life, starting with drawing clothes for my cut-out dolls. I have a very vivid memory of cutting out a dress to sew for myself when I was about 13,’’ Sylvester says.

‘‘I’d pinned the paper pattern to the fabric and was cutting the shapes when my sister yelled ‘Kate! You’re cutting it wrong’. I looked up at her and replied ‘but it will look better like this’, and I was right.”

Having had a chance to begin reminiscing on her long career, she recalls some of the most memorable moments of her three decades in the industry.

“Standout shows include ‘Brighton Rock’ in 1998 - the runway was laid as a dinner table and Cate Blanchett was in the audience. ‘Frances’ in 2019 when Te Papa allowed us to develop Frances Hodgkins’ textile prints. Walking into Barneys New York and seeing our clothes on the racks. Jacinda Ardern wearing Kate Sylvester to be signed in as prime minister.

‘‘But the greatest highlight always is seeing women in my clothes, clothes that they love,” she says.

And while there may not be any more opportunities to chat with Sylvester in person in her stores, South Island fans of the brand are more likely to see her out in the great outdoors.

“Yes! I’m a keen tramper and need to tick the Milford and Greenstone tracks off my list.”

The tough questions

Otago Polytechnic fashion design students ask Kate Sylvester the tough questions. 

What are the best areas to focus on for new  designers?

The areas you love! Your design needs to be true to you and you need to be passionate to succeed in this very tough industry. Just doing something because you think it will be commercial is a recipe for failure.

Best way to break into the industry?

Get a job, any job! So many of our staff over the years only really settled on the area they wanted to specialise in after starting work - whether its retail, production junior, internship, you will only really understand how the industry works and where you belong once you’re part of a team. 

I did retail, sample machining and patternmaking before building the  brand, and that experience was invaluable.

Also - get your driver's licence and learn Excel. Fundamental basics whether you’re an employee, working for yourself or building a business.

What do you see as most important when starting a brand?

Build your core sustainability pillars into your business plan right from the start. Responsibility to planet and people are not optional extras.

How should we connect with people who might provide job opportunities?

A great way to get an initial start if you can is to do a student internship while you’re studying. It’s a great opportunity to prove yourself and then be remembered when a role becomes available.

Also don’t be afraid to be a fan. Send companies you admire your resume, but make sure you include a letter telling them why you think they’re fantastic! We New Zealanders have a reticence about 
this.

Same thing when you’re in a job interview. When your future boss asks why you want to work for them, make sure your answer is actually about them and their brand.