Australian womenswear brand Philosophy Australia has announced that is has a new owner, with long-serving designer Alison Lennard taking the reins.
While the official announcement of her appointment is only recent, Lennard has been running the business since founder Peter Wood semi-retired three years ago.
Lennard describes her take-over of the business as a natural progression.
"It was a no brainer, it was the natural next progression for the brand, for me and for the entire team.
"Peter Wood, the founding director, had set the company up over 20 years ago and we've been working alongside each other all the way through.
"I consider him my 'fashion dad' and it's purely a generational change," she said.
Officially taking over the business during a pandemic is certainly a feat in itself, and Lennard has made some significant changes to adapt to the environment.
Since its inception, the brand has manufactured in Australia and has historically housed all of its operations in one building in Rosebery.
Prior to the COVID-19 lockdown, Lennard was searching for a second premises for the brand, but the adaptation to remote work made her reconsider what type of second premises the business needed.
"I was looking for a very similar setup to what we had in our HQ in Rosebery which was Peter's building which we'd been based for 15 years," Lennard said.
"But working remotely proved to me that actually we didn't need that kind of space and that kind of set up anymore.
"So I've now split us to being in two locations.
"So what we now have - I'm calling it The Studio - which is in Waterloo and that's where we have the office set up, we also have the stockroom and showroom.
"And we also have a hub in Ashfield which is where the production is happening from.
"The cutting's happening there, the manufacturing is being organised from there, the QC and dispatch and warehousing is happening from there.
"That was a big change with COVID.
"It was a big change with me mentally. The minute I moved into the new building it felt like it was my company," she said.
However, the split of the business across two locations isn't the only thing that's changed for the business due to the pandemic.
Lennard said that the business will be showcasing its upcoming collections digitally to its rural boutiques.
"I would normally create five identical collections so the each of the states could sell simultaneously and they would all be done under showroom settings.
"Well now what we're going to do is just create one sample collection.
"We will photograph it in a much more comprehensive manner so there'll be front, back and sides rather than just a digital representation, so that will give a really good idea of what it looks like.
"Then we'll be doing Zoom and phone conversations with our customers and confirming their orders that way.
"And because we’re a brand with 20 years of history, they know our fit, they know our style, they know the types of fabrics that we work with," she said.
But the reduction of sample collections isn't the only area where Lennard is becoming more agile and innovative.
Similar to other fashion businesses, Lennard has decided to abandon the traditional fashion calendar and move towards a more reactive model.
She is able to do this thanks to the on shore manufacturing she said.
"For 2020 the change was that I realised I didn't have to work alongside the schedule that's just been historically set - that you launch an indent collection in February, for summer and you launch an indent collection for winter in August.
"So what I'm doing now is really building on the fact that I am locally made and I can do very quick turnaround.
"I'm going to be offering smaller capsules closer to the season which takes some element of risk away from myself but also for my customers. It means we can be more reactive to what's actually happening in the market.
"What we've decided to do is just go smaller, quicker and more often and be more responsive," she said.
When asked if the transition to this model will involve a lot of work, Lennard said that it will be a simple process.
"It's going to be very easy to make the shift. It's almost like, 'why haven't I done this already?'
"Because we're doing it all here, that means we can launch a collection within three months.
"Whereas I know other people, if they are producing offshore, can't turn a range around that quickly and they've had to stick to that original calendar schedule and they've probably stuck to their very similar range size," she said.
Adapting to the current conditions of the market has been a focus for Lennard and the team in recent months, however the long, enduring focus is highlighting the value of Australian manufacture.
"As a business there's a lot of people that are involved with us and I really want to showcase that we can do it really well and we create some beautiful pieces.
"Local manufacture really needs to have its highlight now because we've been doing it all along and hopefully we've become a figurehead in helping other brands do the same.
"Australian manufacture isn't something that's expensive, it's value related," Lennard added.
"I've had customers tell me that they've got a pair of my pants and they've been wearing them for 10 years and they still love them. Quality is enduring.
"That's what I'm really pushing; that Australian manufacture has been left to the wayside for quite a long time and we've now got the opportunity to really not rely on China.
"We've got the skills here. Let's bring it back," she said.