Australian womenswear retailer Blue Illusion has marked 20 years in business.
The retailer now has 107 stores across Australia and New Zealand, as well as an eCommerce platform.
Melbourne-based CEO Donna Guest has credited its success to three pillars: Fashion, Lifestyle and Community.
Guest and her husband, the late Danny Guest, built the business together with Danny overseeing the business operations.
The couple had previously owned a wholesale business and transformed this into Blue Illusion with their first boutique in Hampton opening in 1998.
Guest employs managers and staff of a similar age to customers, with the French-inspired boutiques home to fashion, accessories and homewares.
Collections are designed and created through inspiration from the streets of Paris and the brand’s campaign shoots are always created in France.
Blue Illusion ambassadors have included French actress Juliette Binoche, supermodel Estelle Lefebure, stylist Caroline De Maigret, artist Mirka Mora and 94 year old New York icon, Iris Apfel.
As an advocate of sustainable practices, the brand's current collection is created from 95% natural fibres.
The most prominent example is Blue Illusion's “benga jeans”, made from Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) approved Turkish denim.
Events are regularly held in Blue Illusion stores, with a percentage of sales donated to hundreds of community charities.
In 2018, Blue Illusion boutiques hosted 1083 charity events raising $326,000 taking its total donations to over $5.5 million. The company also sponsors 119 children through World Vision.