A little over a year ago, I wrote a Blog about a new brand of jeans I’d discovered – titled Cool jeans for REAL WOMEN – how New London Jeans found a gap in the market http://wp.me/p29YsS-110
Brighton Lifestyle, 15C Church Street, Brighton
Now, given I’d already shared my enthusiasm for the brand with you, I really didn’t expect to visit the topic again. That is, until I popped down to Brighton Lifestyle in Church Street, Brighton, a few days ago and saw the latest range for winter from New London.
Yep, they’ve done it again. Well, I thought, I can justify ONE new pair, can’t I? Except then I started ‘trying on’ and found three I absolutely loved. Which led to a phone call to my lovely friend Rochelle who agreed to model for me so we could show you what’s available. I also had a chat with Claire Alexander (Sales and Design Director, Chris Alexander Agency) about her inspiration for this season.
But first, here are some highlights from the New London range modelled by Rochelle. The jeans are topped with pieces chosen from the range at the Brighton Lifestyle store. Details below…
Brown ‘Hyde’ velvet jeansNew London Brown ‘Hyde’ velvet jeans – $149.90
Orange camisole by Cream – $149
Pretty in Pink cream sheepskin jacket – $169.00
New London black ‘Hoffman’ style jeans – $149.90
David Barry puffer vest – $145
Lime green Ping Pong top – $95
New London denim studded ‘Notting Blue’ style – $149.90
Shirt by Cindy G – $169.90
Beads by Cindy G – $45
Brown New London ‘Ramsey’ casual cargo jeans – $149.90
Grey cord New London jeansGrey cord New London jeans – $149.90
Ping Pong polka long cardigan – $129.00
Cream camisole in khaki – $55.00
The most popular denim in the new London range – the ‘Stoke’ style
The most popular denim in the New London range -‘Stoke’ style – $149.90
Black faux leather sheepskin jacket by Pretty In Pink – $169.00
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Speaking with the woman behind many of these wonderful styles, Sales and Design Director for the Chris Alexander Agency, Claire Alexander, she told me how keeping the range as a ’boutique’ brand gives them a point of difference in the market.
Sales and Design Director, Chris Alexander Agency – Claire AlexanderNew London jeans aren’t sold at major department stores or online. But they’re jumping off the shelves at niche boutiques, being snapped up by women who want jeans that are funky and fit well – without feeling like they’re wearing their daughter’s jeans that are cut WAAaaayy too low…
This season’s range of styles is her favourite.
Jen: So tell us about the new winter range. How does it differ to last year’s?
Claire: This winter range is more comprehensive. There’s more to it than last winter. There’s more fabrication…
Jen: What does THAT mean?
Claire: Well rather than being purely a denim brand, we’ve evolved to use a range of fabrics. So due to customer demand, our tag line is ‘We fit you and your life.’ So rather than just denim for casual wear, we’ve also got moleskin brush cotton fabrics, the velvet, printed velvet, pleather with stretch, so slightly dressier styles as well.
(Brighton Lifestyle didn’t have this style, so we’re using a shot from the brochure to show you the ‘Pleather’ style.)
Pleather pantsJen: Why use ‘pleather’ (man-made leather) rather than the real deal?
Claire: It’s machine washable which makes them very popular! I’ve tested my own many times – they’re great!
Jen: And the price point has stayed the same as last year?
Claire: We’ve tried to own that type of price-point for our customer, so it’s within their expectations. This means a lot of our customers might also then buy two pairs, or try on belts and tops which we have just started producing as well. We don’t break the bank.
Jen: What’s your favourite style for this season?
Claire: I have two that I absolutely live in all the time The Bowen style is great. We call it a 3-D style because it has an insert panel in the leg making it really comfortable. It’s also in a two-way stretch denim which is a nice mid-weight and the vivid blue is really popular. The other is the Lambeth I’m wearing today. (see Claire’s picture above) It also has an elastic waist so it’s really comfy!
So there you go. A fantastic new range of jeans for this winter. Check out the New London website at: http://www.newlondon.com.au/about/
…to find the nearest stockist near you, or visit the Brighton Lifestyle store at 15C Church Street, Brighton.
New London brochure – Winter 2014I love discovering a new fashion find and sharing. With winter edging around the corner, I was looking at my wardrobe and thinking it needed a refresh – particularly in the jeans department – when lo and behold, I stumbled across this FAB brand that fitted the bill (and bum) in more ways than one.
The iconic look for a pair of New London Jeans involves studs and stitching. Tres cool and probably a bit pricey, right? Well, here’s the bonus. They DON’T carry a ridiculous price tag like some of their competitors. And the reason they sell so well is that they’re designed for real women BY real women.
Statement stitching is a hallmark of New London JeansSales and Design Director at Chris Alexander Agency, Claire Alexander, has worked in fashion ever since she left school and has helped run the Chris Alexander Agency with her husband for the past 15 years. About three years ago, they decided there was a gap in the market that needed filling – that women (about 30-years +) wanted jeans which were comfortable, affordable and looked cool.
After a bit of research, they came across New London Jeans, which was originally launched by a French designer. Along with some Chinese partners, their agency now supplies the Australasia region and business is booming.
Sales and Design Director Claire Alexander‘We now work with Anthony, the designer, to broaden the range to suit our market here,’ said Claire. ‘Each range is different and we’ve been developing it largely based on customer and store feedback. We now have a strong loyalty base which is great, because women really love it’
One of Claire’s largest clients is Eco-D, which has twelve stores around Australia. ‘The managers give me fantastic feedback on fit. That has really helped with the success of the brand.’
Claire speaks from personal experience when she describes what women want. ‘We’re giving something to women who are not necessarily brand devotees. I mean, I don’t want to wear what my nieces in their 20s are wearing and I don’t want to spend $300 on a designer-label pair of jeans. We want a good product with a bit of a fashion statement that’s comfortable too.’
With a median price of around $150, Claire says a lot of their customers will buy two pairs – one as a fashion statement and another for day-to-day wear. ‘And the quality of fabrics we use stacks up well against the more expensive labels,’ she added.
Winter colour range in New London Jeans new four-way stretch fabricHere’s another bonus with New London Jeans. They’ve just been released in a new fabric that is exclusive to the brand. It’s a four-way stretch denim, making it super comfy.
‘It’s like wearing trakky pants but they look like jeans,’ said Claire. ‘And they don’t go baggy around the bum plus they wash well. It’s one that all the retailers say is performing really well. It comes in five colours this season – the turmeric colour is our key fashion statement for winter.’
I reckon the real key to the success of the brand is because they make each style in three different ‘types’. Claire says they classify them as a taper fit, a pipe fit, and a pole fit. ‘ A taper is like a skinny jean – it’s a mid-rise jean and it tapers off down the leg, but it’s not as tight fitting as a skinny jean,’ she said.
Vicki models the Hyde velvet style‘A pipe fit is similar to a trouser leg – more like a cigarette leg – straight all the way down. And the pole fit is a bigger fitting jean with a higher rise and a fuller leg and better suited to bigger girls. So for instance, with clients like Eco-D, they’ll mostly want the taper fit. Then other stores who cater to more mature customers but also want a cool look, go for the other two styles.’
Yep, it’s all about the FIT. Claire says they work and work and WORK on the re-fitting and shape of these denims until they get it exactly right.
This season there are several ‘trends’. Colour is huge – as seen in the new four-way stretch design. Then there’s animal print and velvet, which Vicki, who works with Claire, kindly agreed to model for me.
Grey jean with stitching is a signature look
The STATEMENT piece this season, which features on the New London Jeans stylebook cover, harks back to the brand’s core look – with studding and stitching.
Claire says they never rest on their laurels. ‘We don’t want to keep on doing the same old thing. We want each range to be fresh and to offer our customer different styles each season. We’re constantly working on ways to improve.’
And while New London Jeans has a website, you can’t buy these babies on-line. Claire says it’s best with jeans to try them on to get the ‘right’ fit. ‘All our styles are on-line so people an browse and see what they like and then find a store that sells it. That way they get the right fit. We also try and help our stores become ‘jean specialists’, with direct advice and a style guide, which works really well.’
New London Jeans coated black denim skirtAND THERE’S MORE!! Great to see that as well as jeans, Claire has included a denim skirt in this season’s range. Not just any old skirt, either. This one’s a bit classier than the rest, sporting a ‘coating’ which gives the black denim a very smart finish. In fact, it’s even proven a hit with – believe it or not – GOLFERS.
‘Next summer we’re bringing in bleached denim skirts and coloured denim skirts and some are even in sateen, because we’ve found this style is really popular with golfers. It’s hard to find a non-daggy golf skirt, so this has been a big hit.’
Whooda thunk?
And here’s proof of the brand’s success. Last summer, New London Jeans had twenty-five pieces in the range. Next summer, that number will be double to meet demand, with more than FIFTY styles. Go, Claire!
If you’d like to see more of the New London Jeans range, and to find your nearest stockist, visit the website at www.newlondon.com.au
