kate sylvester

Kate Sylvester's collections embody intelligence, witty irreverence, sophistication and modern femininity according to her own website. The elegant brand, started in 1993, has since become a well known name in New Zealand fashion. With stores located in Auckland and Wellington, Kate Sylvester also has her garments stocked in numerous Australian stores as well as an online store.

Photos katesylvester.com and myself

The Wellington boutique is modern and bright, and resembles Kate Sylvester's own style and garments perfectly. With pale neutral tones, a light blue contrasts with shades of grey. Wooden racks and shelving look sophisticated, as opposed to plastic hangers and tables found in low end retail stores. Garments were hung on racks that were located around the exterior walls of the store, meaning that no garments were obscured from view when entering the store. 

The clothing matches the boutique in the sense that all of the garments were neutral and feminine, and fitted perfectly into the essence of the store. The majority of the clothing was impressively made in New Zealand, with only a few garments being made in China. Therefore the quality was high, as expected, yet there was more loose threads around the hem and on buttons than I would have thought. However, still the garments were of a higher quality than that of low to mid market stores. I noticed that although Kate Sylvester may be influenced by trends, her garments do not follow what is happening in the retail industry as much as the low to mid market sectors do. Her garments are inspired by an idea or theme, while cheaper garments are created to meet a current trend, which has been originally created by a designer.

Photo katesylvester.com