Hill's (Kiwi) hoist
As the first lady of Australian fashion Alannah Hill needs no introduction. But as an international retailing virgin she admits to sometimes feeling a little out of her depth, as Tracey McEldowney discovered.
While former Wallaby Peter Fitzsimmons can't wait to exit the place, designer Alannah Hill is looking for any excuse she can find to fly across the Tasman.
"Now I have a grand excuse to explore all of New Zealand. I will be able to create little holidays with the grand excuse of 'I have to go to New Zealand . . .I have to see how the store is going. I also plan to stay in all of New Zealand's fancy hotels, I do so love a fancy hotel."
Speaking just two weeks out from the opening of her first retail enterprise outside of Australia, it is clear the flamboyant designer - best known for her "intensely feminine" range of stretch silk dresses, accessories and shoes - is more than a little excited about her impending Kiwi adventure.
Already boasting in excess of 60 stockists throughout Asia, Europe and the US, an exclusive deal with department store David Jones and 12 of her own stores, Hill has deliberately cut back on the wholesaling side of her business to help drive its retail arm. And with New Zealand being the first international pin off the cushion - so to speak - these days it is the Auckland-based enterprise commanding most of her attention.
"I was waiting for the right retail opportunity and when Nuffield Street came up I pounced like a wayward kitten. We negotiated heavily to get the best spot and I did - the corner.
"[The process] has been very difficult. It's like starting again opening up here. Even though New Zealand is a sister country, it really is like dealing with a brand new world."
But while she describes the new store as "like a dream bedroom for a little bride", Hill argues the opening of the store represents far more to the brand's journey than just a bricks and mortar add-on to an already highly-lucrative business.
"I am always trying to reinvent myself. New Zealand is a bit of a test really to see if our business structure works offshore. If it does - and I have great confidence that it will - I plan to open stores around the world. After New Zealand the next stop will be Los Angeles and then London."
Not dissimilar to the problems that have plagued other big name fashion brands attempting to broaden the scope of their label, Hill says the biggest challenge she has faced in developing the export side of her business has been navigating the red tape and "troubles".
"Exporting can be a very tiresome business. It's especially hard with our seasons working back to front - it's almost impossible to work around it but designing a trans-seasonal collection always helps a little. One needs to find a good agent, a good PR company and you must sell that brand and what you represent well. You have to have your brand right in your own country and all the problems ironed out before you even think of tackling exporting as you only get one go at it. If you stuff up the first time around you tend to sink a little."
However, never one to stand still for too long the ever-enterprising Hill, whose label is 70 per cent manufactured in Australia and 30 per cent offshore, is also planning to develop her onshore offerings - just in case.
Having recently launched a new line of special occasion dresses, priced from $900 to $3000, she plans to add four new stores to her existing 12 Australian outlets solely to stock the new collections.
The tenacious Hill, who as legend has it arrived in Melbourne from Tasmania with six suit cases and $50 "most of which went on the taxi to the city", has clearly come a long way since launching her own label nine years ago.
"I am most proud of being in charge of my own little empire when it really looked like I may have to stick to waitressing and dancing in cages for a living. When I walk into one of my stores and I see what I've created I do feel a little chuffed with myself," says Hill.
But that doesn't mean she leaves any room for complacency.
"There's always a flip side to success. . . that nagging feeling that you don't deserve it, that it will all get taken away and every little dream is a nightmare waiting to happen. I do so hate to fail, such a terrible feeling to fail isn't it?"