New menswear line mixes patriotism with class

Professional AFL player Matt Foster is making his first venture into fashion design.
Set to officially launch his new menswear label Fozlong at trade fair Fashion Exposed in September, Foster said he hoped to fill a void in the market for "high quality Australian clothing".
"Fozlong was dreamt up late last year. I always had my eye on fashion and I started to be a little disappointed with the range and style of men's clothing on the market. I knew what I wanted to do in terms of cut and style but found there was a limited amount of product on the market to meet my needs."
Initially developing a range of T-shirts with Australian-inspired logos, the 2006/07 collection now includes a range of scarves, hats, leather footwear, cashmere sweaters and cardigans, a long sleeve hooded top and silver jewellery. With the cashmere products priced from $200 to $300 and the footwear between $150 to $200, Foster said it will bring a "sense of class" to Australian fashion.
"I could see the need for something new in the Aussie market that was not a surf or sport spin off. The outcome is Fozlong, a label which combines quality design with attention to detail and a sense of class which is distinctly Australian."
While the Fozlong range has grown and developed throughout the year, Foster said he hoped to exploit the commercial appeal of his Australiana T-shirt line which includes a print featuring a kangaroo with antlers.
"The concept of using Australian places and Australiana is a hard avenue to express successfully," Foster said. "I wanted something Australian to identify that my label is Australian and that could be strong enough to become an exportable product.
"As I can see with American labels that use such names as 'Michigan University' or 'Ohio State' on their tees, I hope my Australian tees will do well in other countries."