TARFISH
IS an unlikely name for a fashion house but to many, it is
synonymous with the down-to-earth style of New Zealand. Its work
is distinctive, and above all, comfortable; it is made by New Zealanders
for the New Zealand environment.
Founded six years ago by Laurie-ann Foon and her
sister, Miriam, the fashion house currently retails at two locations
in Wellington, New Zealand. At the Starfish workrooms in the Willis
Street Village, Laurie-ann meets with her staffwho, incidentally,
all wear Starfish offerings, in their own waydiscussing future
designs. Others are busy at work with wholesaling enquiries, patterns
and manufacture. The rooms buzz with vitality, reflecting a team
looking forward to the challenges of the future.
HE
PHILOSOPHY of Starfish, according to Laurie-ann, places honesty
first. Refreshingly, she puts the importance of reputation and goodwill
far above profits and numbers.
To her, Starfish's clothes are an extension of
the wearer's personality. 'You have to be true to yourself first.
We want people to think and have an experience when they come in.
We want people to blossom in their true selves.'
But these are not merely slogans to Laurie-ann
or her team. Visit Starfish's retail outlets and the feeling is
evident. Once inside, customers want to experiment with new colours
and changethanks to innovative designs that do not follow
the fashion establishment. 'We are about quality, and being innovative,
and are not dictated to.'
The name itself begs a question: why 'Starfish'?
Again Laurie-ann's reply is well in line with what you see at the
store. 'Fashion is fun, and friendly. The name feels welcome and
puts a smile on your face.'
HE
LIBERATION range says a lot about Starfish. It acknowledges
'what it's like to live in this country,' but adapted to one's moods.
Laurie-ann recognizes that New Zealand has a deep agricultural heritage,
and the clothes demonstrate it by being strong and comfortable.
But there are deeper meanings. New Zealanders
all share the desire 'to liberate themselves out of their environment,'
says Laurie-ann. It is about getting from the farm to the city or
from suburbia to prominence. This is the New Zealand Dream.
New Zealanders are not followers of convention.
And being a country where you can go on a bush track minutes from
the centre of any city, a journey home from a nightclub may take
you over a fence and through a less than urban terrain. The temperature
can change drastically in one day. Starfish identifies with this,
paying attention to the layers which create warmth, while conceiving
designs which can be worn any way you want.
While there is this recognition of customers'
needs, Starfish is not about to sit back and look in the rear-view
mirror for ideas. Laurie-ann explains that there is a mixture of
a customer focus and their own feelings. Starfish 'leads and encourage
people, forcing them to think about something else', and not any
preconceived notions. Even the name forces you to think.
TARFISH
has come a long way from its second-hand clothes-selling at the
Lower Hutt Car Club. It has progressed, building on the $133 made,
which was then used to open its first store at the Wakefield Market
in Wellington.
Currently there are no plans to export, with wholesaling
in New Zealand its current aim. The plans are to consolidate the
New Zealand side first, continuously refining the manufacturing
quality. 'We won't export or sell a bad garment. We have to make
a damn good product.'
But being in Wellington does not hurt Starfish's
optimism. Wellington is an 'expressive' in Laurie-ann's eyes. 'It
is manifesting itself. It's a city with a good buzz.' We can't agree
more.
Jack Yan is founding publisher of Lucire.
This article first appeared in Lucire on October 20. 1997.

Hay Street Ebony
wears the Axis sheath × 2 from the Liberation range.
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New Zealanders all share the
desire to liberate themselves out of their environment,
says Laurie-ann. It is about getting from the farm to the city or
from suburbia to prominence. This is the New Zealand Dream.
From Jack Yan, five years on
It's the darnedest thing, revisiting this article which I wrote and art-directed in 1997. When it was first published, I remember
Lucire won an award and the folks at Site of the Day Award
(SODA) enjoyed how we had
tiled some of the images in the background. Pretty innovative back
then using stock HTML and
Notepad. The original image files have been used for this republicationbut
they look quite a bit smaller than I remembered as monitor resolutions have improved.
The other note is that we didnt realize how special it was to have gotten Laurie Foon as our first interviewee. Laurie took a chance on us at a time when no one wanted to be on the internet or understood its significance. The first issue of Lucire stayed exactly the same for something like six weeks, because we couldnt find anyone who wanted to be in the second issue. We broke the drought for Christmas, then did a pretty special issue in early 1998, and the rest is history.
Related links
Starfish
www.starfish.co.nz
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