MELBOURNE: Asuza will capitalise on its wholesale success with the likes of General Pants and Fat when it opens its first boutique this month.
The unisex label will open its own store in Melbourne's Fitzroy on November 26, selling its men's and women's apparel as well as its own brand of homewares. The store will also stock capsule collections from local and international designers.
The label's founders, Daniel Preston and Jonathan Redfern, said the desire to showcase their collections in their entirety was among the reasons for opening their own boutique.
“We hope to achieve a sense of a showroom people can actually purchase from and have a dedicated space whereby Asuza can constantly evolve and engage,” Preston and Redfern said.
The first collection in store will be Asuza's spring/summer 2010/11 range, dubbed 'Psychotropix', with retail price points ranging from $69 to $600. The collection marks the first time the label has released womenswear.
“We hope to capitalise on the amazing response we have had to our first official women's collection for SS10/11 and build the women's side of the business to the level of the men's within the next season,” Preston and Redfern said.
Signature pieces from the label include utilitarian jackets, flowing capes, sheepskin leather bombers and knitwear. Fabrics include silk and lyocell, and graphic prints are featured heavily.
Preston and Redfern have also released textile-based homewares under the Asuza name, describing their cushions and other creations as “Missoni for those on a passion pop budget”.
“Further development is in the mix and we plan to continue drip feeding homewares into the seasonal Asuza offerings. Our goal is to work with the right partners and develop Asuza Home as a stand alone arm of the brand,” the designers said.
Asuza was founded in 2007 and is based in Fitzroy, Melbourne. Product is manufactured in Australia, China and Indonesia and is wholesaled through General Pants, Incu, Fat and independents including Violent Green (QLD), Somedays (NSW) and Father (WA). The brand has select stockists in New Zealand, Taiwan, China and Japan and is sold online via The Grand Social.