Combining quality with sustainability

Australian fashion label Elk has grown to reach national success. Founded by two Bellarine residents, the brand is continuing to grow with the launch of their latest store in Barwon Heads.

Marnie Goding and Adam Koniaras started the business 20 years ago with one store in Preston. The pair now have eight stores, soon to be 10.

Goding said Elk had its own kind of handwriting and a unique look it identified with, something that’s made it stand out.

Elk was born out of a shared love for contemporary design. Ms Goding has marketing experience and Mr Koniaras is a jeweller by trade, and the pair saw an opportunity to enter the market.

 

The business found immediate success in wholesaling its products. Continually inspired by their achievements, their natural curiosity as designers kicked in.

“We mastered one type of production or material and then we’d find new materials to work with and be inspired by new ideas,” Goding said.

“We just applied all of those things, we would make new collections between two and four times a year and whatever we made, we sold and it was just a wonderful time of experimentation.

“We’ve always just kept pushing the boundary through design and through materiality and then further as we progressed in innovation and sustainability.”

Sustainability and ethical production are major focuses for the brand and something Elk is conscious about as it continues expanding.

“There is this part of us that has to be very mindful about that growth because we know that the impact that we have increases as we grow larger,” Goding said.

 

The pair are excited about the opportunities out there as an Australian business and expanding their sustainable message, but always balancing that with the impact they have.

Goding described the advancement of sustainability as being “frustratingly slow,” not just in fashion but in consumer goods generally.

“When we started to transition our business away from functioning as a traditional fashion house to a more sustainable way of thinking, we were on our own.

“In the beginning it was an intensely overwhelming period of time, and our way that we dealt with it was by bringing who we could into the business to try and help us learn.

“Sustainability and fashion was in its infancy and I think we have seen the most incredible change coming, broad sweeping globally across the industry through supply chains, and through many other areas, but we can’t move fast enough.”

 

Elk has a full repair workshop in Reservoir where it will repair items. The business also takes back clothing when people are finished, integrating the item into its re-new collection and offering the customer a voucher, which keeps clothing out of landfill.

The business has been strategic in the way it has grown and how quickly it has expanded, with Goding saying Elk wants to be around in another 20 years’ time.

“We’re a really strong business with a great foundation and owners at the helm who are working with an incredible team of people to ensure we’ve got our longevity as a business.

“We are future focused, we’re always looking forward and I love the fact we feel like we’ve got this massive crowd of people who are with us and coming up behind us and pushing us along, it’s really encouraging.”

The newest store officially opened in Barwon Heads on Thursday (August 8), providing an opportunity for Elk to present its whole collection to the community.

 

The label is stocked in independent stores across the region, including previously in Ocean Grove. Once that closed, Goding said she and Koniaras always felt there was a gap.

“It felt like we offered something unique in the mix, it was equally just so pleased to be part of this vibrant community that has been very supportive and we’re not impinging on anybody’s business in the area that stocks Elk.

“It felt right, and it is part of home life for us, we’ve always lived in and worked in the same suburbs and this is our home now and it just felt like part of the extension of our home life.”

The new store features a fully glass front, allowing natural light to fill the space.

“We want the stores to feel like home, they’re all designed with soft lighting, they’ve got beautiful carpets under foot, they use textural materials, velvets and cottons,” Goding said.

“We want everybody that walks into our store regardless of their age or their background or their size to be able to come in and feel comfortable.”

 

Goding believes the business had some of the most incredible customers, who fuel them with support.

“That passion that we get from our customers absolutely feeds us and it validates what we’re doing, and it creates conversation and it makes it more than just product on shelves.”

Goding doesn’t come from a fashion background, but has always loved design, interiors and art, and has always needed a creative part in her life to feel fulfilled.

“It’s always been an interest, it’s always been a love even though there’s not been that traditional training in the background.

“I’ve never been trend-driven or never been fussed about what everybody’s doing, it’s that independence that you just crave in finding your own style or your own trend that resonated with you.”

From a business point of view, Goding is constantly inspired by the team around her and the industry influencing them to be better and continue on Elk’s journey.

Elk is at 41 Hitchcock Avenue, Barwon Heads.

For more information, head to elkthelabel.com