Following a buyout and subsequent financial boost, UK-based brand Liberty is ready to ramp up its presence in the Southern hemisphere, with Australia first off the block. Daniela Aroche reports..
For a 135-year-old brand traditionally synonymous with heritage, history and steadfast design direction, veteran UK company Liberty has experienced a fair few changes in the past 12 months – including a switch in ownership, which has refreshed its corporate vision.
The sale to investment fund BlueGem Capital Partners, finalised in May 2010, not only provided the London department store and its arts and fabrics arm with new direction, but also substantial financial backing, which is now fuelling growth – including that of its Australian operations.
While the arts and fabrics Liberty business has been trading in Australia for over 30 years, this is the first time the brand has actively looked at expanding its Australian footprint. As a result, the company has also recently appointed local duo Peter Redding and Amanda Lagos of Collaboration & Co as Australian agents to drive business and oversee progress on the ground.
The pair officially signed on this year and, having previously worked with Liberty of London and Australia and in various roles, are well-equipped for the task ahead.
“Basically, Amanda and I have been brought on board to represent Liberty in Australia and launch it properly,” he explains. “It’s the perfect fit as we have worked with the company for years, so we understand Liberty very well and we know the market is ready for it. Lately, companies such as David Jones have also stated that the part of their business working best is the top end of the market, or the ‘designer end’, so that also points to Australia being a good market for Liberty and ready, and that’s also influenced the decision to ramp up operations here now.”
Given the allusion to David Jones and Liberty’s desire to significantly expand its reach in Australia, it’s no surprise that the iconic Australian department store was one of its primary targets, with plans now in motion to join forces and create an exclusive branded collection.
“Basically, we are looking to branch the business out, but in a very controlled way to keep Liberty fresh and exclusive – we don’t want to saturate the market. To do this, we’re focusing on targeting a few companies within different markets in Australia,” Lagos says. “We just started this process a few months ago and recently met with David Bush from David Jones as part of this to talk about a Liberty branded collection that we would create – with Liberty, but with the collaboration inside the Australian market.”
According to Redding, the David Jones collection, scheduled to drop into select boutiques and the department store early next year, will also see the appointment of a local design team to ensure product is tailored to the Australian market.
“The collaboration would have a designer and a pattern cutter who is designing specifically for the Australian market, and a designer who has worked in many countries and is very experienced. So it’s not an English brand coming in and defining what is good for this market, when in reality it’s totally foreign and doesn’t suit it at all,” he says.
Not two to rest on their laurels, Redding and Lagos haven’t stopped at David Jones, and are also working with a number of select Australian labels to create more collaborative collections.
“The expansion is already under way, so we’ve also spoken with other customers within the region and are currently working on collaborations with labels to use Liberty fabrics,” Lagos says.
“Liberty already works with Rhodes & Beckett, Baubridge & Kay, and Sportscraft, but we are also working on some new collections with labels such as [swimwear label] Tigerlily, [childrenswear brand] Minihaha, Marcs, and General Pants Co.”
The General Pants Co and Tigerlily collections, in particular, are set to drop into stores from November, are also part of a larger strategy by Liberty to reposition the brand in a modern light and capture a younger target market, according to Lagos.
