Queensland label Holster is stocked in some of the biggest department stores around the world yet still runs its daily operations out of a small warehouse space in Noosa. Tracey Porter investigates what part the chilled out lifestyle has played in the casual footwear label's early success.
The irony of it is not lost on Holster co-founder Ben Nothling.
Fortuitously born the great, great grandson of a certain Mr David Jones, the 33-year-old no longer labours over why he and wife Natalie Miller can get their brand stocked in department stores all round the world - but find it difficult to get a guernsey locally.
"In the United Kingdom we supply Russell and Bromley, Harrods, Selfridges, Fenwicks and Bentalls. In Asia we supply department store meccas Takashimaya and Isetan in Japan and Singapore. In Australia we supply 350-plus independent retailers but no big name department stores. I thought my [family connections] may have pulled a few strings for me," Nothing says.
Still, it is but a small blip on a radioactive radar that in just eight years has since the couple grow their label from just one or two stockists in Queensland to more than 1500 across the globe.
From humble beginnings Holster today boasts distributors across Singapore, The Philippines, Puerto Rico, Hong Kong and Taiwan while the brand also has a 10-strong sales force across Australia and New Zealand.
Founded following a 2008 trip to Bali, Nothling says his label offers a diverse footwear and belt range but derives much of its success from just one style - its now infamous jelly sandal.
Constructed from PVC materials, Nothling markets the brand based on the tag proffered by the label's early European adopters who describe the brand as the "Rolls Royce of Jelly Sandals".
The collection, which includes ladies and children's sandals encrusted with diamontes, espadrille wedges with jelly uppers, leather flip-flops and a range of belts, boasts what Nothling describes as "odour-resistant" properties.
The fact its footwear is also machine washable and non-marking, are also key selling points - particularly given the diverse Holster audience, he says.
"[The label] is all about beach glamour. Our brand is marketed globally as an Australian beach fashion company. Women from all parts of the globe dream of Australian beaches so when they put on a pair of [our] shoes they can live that dream," he says.
Positioned internationally alongside brands such as the Ipanema flip flops - made famous by high profile model Giselle Bundchen - and Grendha and Melissa jellies, Nothling and Miller say they make it a point to liase daily with their distributors to keep abreast of changes in the label's various markets.
Discussion can range from samples and styles to container shipments and product placement.
To help minimise confusion across the Holster wholesale base, all footwear is sold in US sizing with choice ranging from a size three infant to a ladies size 10. Nothling says the brand also goes to great lengths to ensure consistency in pricing with the children's range wholesaling for around $33 including GST and the women's range selling to buyers for between $22 and $100.
Sizing, colour and product mix are all altered depending on the demands of individual markets.
"In Japan the women have small feet so we only make size five to seven. Whereas in Australia and Europe, the ladies have much larger feet so we sell more of sizes eight to 10. The colours in Asia for footwear are also very different to Australia. In Japan they order fluro orange jellies and bright greens. The western women [however] prefer black, clear and pewter."
Yet while the company would now appear to have its business strategy well in check, this has not always been the case.
Nothling says that in the early days particularly, the brand found it difficult to find the right factories to produce their product to specified standards.
The label has also encountered its share of problems regarding faulty shipments as well as concerns around credit when things go wrong.
"We lost a fair bit of money [but] we don't deal with suppliers like that again. You need to be patient in finding good suppliers. Many will let you down and when they do we move on to another," he says.
With these types of issues now all but forgotten, the brand is now free to concentrate on boosting its international profile. Nothling says the label was recently approached by United Kingdom-based department store Debenhams, which has asked to stock the Holster, brand for spring/summer 2010.
This, he says, is in keeping with the anticipated growth of the label which will be further strengthened by an extensive overseas public relations blitz.
"[Ideally we want to] keep expanding globally and investing in more PR overseas to strengthen the brand image. We want women all over the world to be wearing our shoes."