Lifecycle: Metalicus
Lifecycle: Stretch
BRW. 6 March 2008
Page 73
QUIRKY AND POPULAR FASHION BRAND PLANS OVERSEAS EXPANSION
Melma Hamersfeld, Metalicus
Position: Founder
Milestones:
1992: Produces prototype garments in stocking fabric
2000: Adds stretch wool and cotton garments
2004: Melbourne concept store opens
2007: Brand acquired by PAS Group
Metalicus is a brand built on an unconventional idea: outerwear made from stocking fabric. Now the steady growth in popularity and sales of these unusual garments during the past 15 years has attracted private equity investors.
The PAS Group bought the business in November 2007, adding to its existing stable of apparel brands, and 2008 will see the brand taking steps towards faster growth and further international expansons.
Founder and designer Melma Hamersfeld produced the first Metalicus garments in 1992, convinced there was potential in two-way stretch fabric.
“When I put it on I knew it was something I would always want to wear,” she says. “It would be the first piece that you would put on in the morning and I just knew that long-term, it was going to be an absolute winner.”
The garments’ limited hanger appeal made it essential to nurture relationships with retailers, agents and distributors. “I knew customers had to be able to see and sear the products,” Hamersfeld says. “You just have to get one piece on people and then they’re hooked.”
Now the brand sells through five dedicated stores in New South Wales and Victoria. Its flagship store in Melbourne opened in December 2007 and PAS plans to open another flagship store in each Australian state, and one in London.
The fashion label produces its signature body-skimming garments in myriad colours in cotton, viscose, wool and meryl microfibre as well as the original “stocking” nylon Bodytight fabric.
Although the Bodytight fabric can now be manufactured overseas, Metalicus continues to make most product ranges in Australia.
The label works with only two mills on their other fabrics, collaborating closely to create fabrics that meet their designers’ specifications, and in 2007 a dedicated research and development manager was appointed to continue the process. Designs are garment-dyed post-manufacture to ensure exact tones.
Hamersfeld predicts that the PAS Group acquisition means that the brand’s growth is ready to accelerate.
Metalicus currently sells through more than 400 stores domestically, and more than 200 internationally. Turnover is increasing by a steady average of 50 per cent annually. The original Bodytight range sells alongside the Mini Metalicus, Miss Metalicus and Basics ranges.
Metalicus has also signed a new deal with Neiman Marcus in the United States, and new stockists will come on board, particularly in the brand’s primary export markets: Canada, the United Kingdom and the US.
Hamersfeld is content to take on a creative consultant role and directorship as she entrusts the label to the PAS Group, which has already had success with fashion brands including Review and Fiorelli.
“The business is booming and I think it’s the right time to leave,” Hamersfeld says. “I’ve wanted overseas to embrace and understand it and that’s how I’m leaving it.”
“Why wouldn’t you be happy?”
SARAH NEILL
