Flying the black flag

By Gena Tuffery, October 18, 2007 @ 10:48 am

Bring out the black-painted yardie, Nom*D is turning 21. Margi Robertson, the designer behind the dark Dunedin fashion label, might give it a slug. Yes, she’s old enough to have a 21-year-old—but she’s still game enough to risk getting doused in Speights at a Die! Die! Die! gig. Idealog talks to Robertson about what it’s like to be all grown-up

Photograph by Jane Dawber/Otago Daily Times

So Nom*D is 21. Does it feel like an adult?

I think we are quite grown-up actually. It’s interesting, I went and had a look at a few of the new designers’ [Fashion Week] shows, and I think there are some advantages with age and experience. I’m not saying that they were bad, it’s just … we’ve been doing it for a while. We pretty much know what we’re doing now, you know.

Twenty-one is the traditional age to leave home, but Nom*D did that long ago. Was retailing for nine years before the label was born a good launching platform?

Absolutely. It’s the best thing. When we started to wholesale our own collection in 1986 we already had a network of retailers that we could work with in New Zealand and Australia. So in some ways we were ready to do what we are doing since we started.

The New Zealand public is quite discerning and demanding, and they expect a lot from their products. And so retailing in New Zealand—and being successful here with your own product—is a really good testing ground for your label. It gives you your best feedback. If somebody starting new has the opportunity to retail their product first, then that’s a good thing.

You are one quarter of ‘The New Zealand Four’, so dubbed by Trade and Enterprise when they sent you to London Fashion Week in 1999. Has that been a help or a hindrance?

It was a great endorsement of what we were doing. It was a really big turning point for us as far as figuring out what the whole Nom*D aesthetic was; it made us actually think more about how a collection would be viewed. But as far as the New Zealand look goes, we do a lot of black and this is the land of the All Blacks, but that’s about it.

Do you think the other three are still your biggest competition in New Zealand?

We don’t actually see other labels as being competitors. Obviously Zambesi was one of the other four, and, I mean, that’s my sister [Elisabeth Findlay]. We’re not competitive at all; we’re each other’s best customers. And working with World and Karen Walker—we’ve bought World and had it retail in our stores and at the time we stocked Karen Walker as well.

So in my eyes I don’t really see the fashion industry as being competitive. To me everybody’s got their place, and their look. I don’t know, is that strange?

Yes, but maybe that’s part of being mature. Who do you see as your upcoming non-competitors then? The ‘Future Four’?

The most outstanding new designer for me is Alex Kim of Jaeha. His work and style is truly international, while maintaining that necessary edge. I took a look at Alexandra Owen’s collection online too, as unfortunately I arrived too late for the [Fashion Week] show—which was unusually running on time! She’s also doing her own thing—quite beautiful and individual, but it will appeal to a wide audience. Then I rate Lonely Hearts and Cybele, who are not exactly new, but newish. Both labels have a strong identity and seem to be attracting a good following.

“I don’t know that somebody would rush out and buy Nom*D because Kelly Osbourne wore it. I don’t think the kind of people who wear Nom*D are the sort of people who care. I don’t really like to use it as an endorsement to our label … I suppose we don’t come from that sort of place. I’m just not into celebrity front rows”

And what is your advice to them—how does a grown-up fashion label behave?

I’ve always got that sort of feeling of insecurity and nervousness, because, you know, your absolute objective is to present something that people are going to enjoy. And there is that fear of criticism and all that sort of thing from the press. So I’m not saying that we’re quite happy and resting on our laurels or anything like that.

But there’s a formula that you follow—to work with a stylist and let them know quite early on, before the samples are made and everything, what they’re working with. So everybody’s thinking about the same idea. Collaboration is really important.

Kelly Osbourne once bought one of your famous half-dresses. Is it good for business when someone like her wears your clothes?

I think it’s hype, to be honest. I don’t know that somebody would rush out and buy Nom*D because Kelly Osbourne wore it. I don’t think the kind of people who wear Nom*D are the sort of people who care. I don’t really like to use it as an endorsement to our label … I suppose we don’t come from that sort of place. I’m just not into celebrity front rows.

Speaking of front rows, how do you deal with the politics around yours at Fashion Week?

I’ll tell you what was really interesting! We took out rows A and B—the front two—so we could have a bigger runway. On the day of the show I had four or five phone calls from people saying “I think you’ve actually got me in the wrong row, my ticket says row C.” And it’s just like, for goodness’ sake! Actually C is A, you’re still in the front! But we never conform.

Nom*D on the boards at this year’s Air New Zealand Fashion Week. Photographs by Michael Ng/Air New Zealand Fashion Week

And never have a grand master plan either, I hear?

No. Sometimes I think that not having a too-defined plan means that you won’t be disappointed if things don’t fall into place like you thought they would. The only plan really is to look more to the northern hemisphere.

Why is the southern company looking north?

Because it enables us to do two production runs, a southern hemisphere and a northern hemisphere run. So that utilises those ideas and patterns twice and gives lots of people work.  It gives work to the factories and outworkers that we use. I think everybody benefits from it.

But now that Nom*D is all grown up do you think you might start planning for the future?

Yeah it’s a bit scary really, because the thing is I’m 54, so lots of people ask you that question—especially people like the accountant! But I sort of feel that unless anything happened to us, [husband] Chris and I will be working for another ten years or so. Still, I think we’d still like to have some sort of succession plan in place. I’m hoping that the business will go down to our children, or the people that we’re working with. It’s something that I’ve thought about and I don’t really know if I’ve made a decision about it yet—but I’m not too worried about it either. I mean, for 21 years we’ve been okay, we haven’t really fallen over!