Natasha Welsh has turned her hand to interior design with the opening
of her first boutique, Erin O'Loughlin discovers.
Fashion designer Natasha Welsh has merged crisp whites, soft light and an array of timbers in her eponymous boutique in Paddington. It is the first retail venture for the designer and comes seven years after the launch of her wholesale womenswear label.
“It is a step I have wanted to take for a while,” Welsh says. “The brand now needs the store for a true brand identity. Paddington has such a nice feel to it and it suits the brand immensely.”
The focal point of the 40 square metre space is a feature wall at the rear of the store, pieced together from antique brass batik stamps and offcuts of timber. Wooden shelves jut from the wall to create display space for bags, belts and sweaters, while smaller timber shelves and hooks prop up statement shoes and totes along the right-hand wall. To the left is hanger upon hanger of apparel.
The store was designed by Welsh herself, who hopes the boutique will appeal to women of all ages.
“My goal is to just have a beautiful space for people to enjoy and shop, and to display a full range of my designs as well as lots of other bits and pieces that I love. It's a fun, creative project for me personally.”
Price points in store start at $100 and rise to $1500 and product includes more than Welsh's own designs.
“We carry the full range of the Natasha brand – clothing, shoes, bags, belts – [as well as] vintage jewellery, Thierry Lasry sunglasses from Paris and soon Lindsey Thornburg silk and cashmere cloaks from New York City.”
The space was formerly inhabited by Australian label Ginger & Smart and Welsh says attention was paid to every detail – from furniture to music – in order to create a new and appealing store.
“Shopping needs to be a beautiful experience, not a chore.”