Asos adds Twenty-seven Names

 

Twenty-seven Names has bounced back from the collapse of its retail base in 2009 to nab its sixteenth international stockist, Asos.com.

Designers of the four-year-old womenswear label, Rachel Easting and Anjali Stewart, revealed the deal with the e-tail giant had been 18 months in the making.

“They showed interest in our summer 2009/10 collection and then got back in touch after they had seen our winter collection online,” Easting said.

As a result, Asos has ranged 12 Twenty-seven Names designs which will be sold on the site from February 2011.

The account adds to Twenty-seven Names' 30 international stockists. The coup follows the collapse of six retail clients during the global financial crisis, including one boutique that went into liquidation.

The move forced Easting and Stewart to hit the fundraising trail for participation in New Zealand Fashion Week 2009.

Easting said she and Stewart now only work with boutiques that seek them out.

“We are not targeting stores who have not approached us,” she said. “We are applying a more passive approach to exporting at this stage and actively targeting accounts who have expressed interest in the label. We have found that for the most part this reaps the most rewards.”

Additional plans for the label for 2011 include in-store collection launches hosted by the duo, designed to drive brand recognition and speedy product sell-through. The designers have also taken on new cutters and outworkers to assist with increased production.
“But we will stay New Zealand made,” Easting said.

Twenty-seven Names began life in 2006 as Love Lies Bleeding but was forced to changed its name after a trademark claim from the US.

Erin O'Loughlin