Fashion’s Fortunate Friends
What simply began as a crafty plan to feed their passion for designer leather shoes and jackets, (and, fund more overseas holidays) has evolved into a booming new business for owner/designers, of Isle and Arlo , Bec Scott and Carly Simpson.
The two friends returned from a trip to Bali with suitcases laden with leather jackets and ‘slides’ they designed and had made on the idyllic island, when they had the uncanny idea of pitching them to Milc, Dunsborough’s premier fashion boutique. The two could not believe their luck when Milc ordered on the spot!
“The girls have a beautiful product and our customers seem to agree, so it has been
These black studded beauties are the girls’ best sellers!
great for Milc and no doubt great for the girls” says owner, Nic Cartledge. “We like to support local creatives where possible, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.”
Isle and Arlo are a definite example of “it working” as they now stock 12 boutiques across Australia, with more lined up to take them on. Plus with an online store and appealing social media presence, Bec and Carly are well on the way to funding more trips overseas!
“It feels like we have been very lucky” says Bec. “To think we were originally going to start at the markets, getting into Milc as soon as we did, was a massive coup”.
“Whereas some people come into the fashion industry and work years and years and years at something, for us, it just clicked. Everything just seemed to move in the right direction,” says Carly. “There were no misses, for example, everyone we ‘gifted’ a pair of slides to, returned dividends in that they loved them and posted them all over their social media platforms. And you just know you’re onto a good thing when every path you take, leads somewhere. We were just so lucky”.
“Don’t get us wrong, a lot of thought, effort and work has gone into the back end of Isle and Arlo, and we are proud of what we’ve achieved. We just feel lucky that our dream of doing this was enough for us to create a really good thing considering neither of us have a degree or background in fashion.” Carly says.
“Fashion was really our passion as opposed to a career path, that’s why we feel lucky to be where we are” agrees Bec.
Social media has undoubtedly played its hand in their success, with Instagram being the main driver of their brand development. The Isle and Arlo Instagram account is a clever combination of local models shot by local photographers at locations in and around the South West. Influencers such as Rebecca Jobson feature on their account, as well as Cindy Crawford and Naomi Campbell re-grams and then posts of Dunsborough mums out to lunch, wearing Isle and Arlo also appear.
“Instagram has permitted us to land in the market place where we want to be; high-end, rather than having to build up to that. That’s the power of social media” says Carly. “It would have taken years and lots of money in terms of marketing to get people to wear your brand, others to notice it, wonder where they got it from and then go find that boutique to then purchase your product!”
Instagram – the main driver of their marketing success
We all laugh here at the thought of how ‘archaic’ this seems, yet, this was the case in terms of marketing less than 10 years ago. There’s a pause of reflection, and then Bec says quietly, “I can’t imagine how we would have done all this without social media”.
So, I ask the inevitable; what would happen then, to businesses like Isle and Arlo, if Instagram became obsolete tomorrow?
“That’s where we’ve been clever” chimes in Bec. “Whereas some brands may rely on their online store and social media only, we make sure our products are in stores and use print media. There’s nothing so prestigious in fashion as Vogue Australia, so we advertise there as well.”
“Certainly, our biggest earner in terms of sales are the boutiques and retail outlets as people still prefer going ‘shopping’ because there’s nothing quite like retail therapy!” says Carly.
I’m curious if being based in Dunsborough, Western Australia, has been a
Yup, nothing wrong with local WA models!
disadvantage whilst emerging in the fashion world.
“Not at all” says Bec . “We have so much incredible talent here in terms of photographers, models and the most stunning coastline ever as a backdrop to images. We have a similar lifestyle to Byron Bay and they certainly don’t fail in the fashion stakes”.
For Bec and Carly, the future in fashion certainly seems bright. After a dream start, the girls are determined that longevity is there next goal. “It’s been fun to watch the success of Isle and Arlo, and to have been a part of it from the beginning, is rewarding” says Nic Cartledge. “And who doesn’t love a success story?” she adds.
So, we leave them for now, planning their next overseas trip to source even more high quality and lux leather and create some more classic slides and jackets we can all afford!