"I think some people believe the grass is greener overseas. I'm just not so sure about that. The nature on our doorsteps, the food, the people… its some of the best in the world" Rachael Caughley says of Wellington City, New Zealand.
She should know. Her journey, culminating in the opening of the brilliant new shop 'Caughley', has led her from Wellington, to Dunedin, to the bright lights of Shanghai, a short look at London, and back again. Caughley stocks streetwear for both men and women, from all over the world. It's a personal collection, as eclectic as it's owner. While her off duty look is more jeans and a t-shirt, Caughley has something for all types of people and tastes to make the wearer feel good. International and hard-to-find labels such as Sydney and Brown, 6397 and Alexandra Dodds are just some of the brands Caughley stocks. Primarily, the fashion at Caughley is all about good taste, and that is something that owner, Rachael Caughley has in abundance. The sense of style at Caughley is the kind of thing you can't learn. It is something that's innate, deep and meaningful. Caughley just knows what makes you look and feel amazing. And she is sharing it with Wellington.
"It's about the tension - a bit of edge, a bit of rock and roll"
Caughley, the shop, she notes, is a relaxed and chilled environment, and that's just the way Rachael wants it. "It should not be a place where people feel pressured to buy - it's a space where you want to be inspired by putting your best foot forwards". While no designer herself, Rachael knows her customer, and fashion, inside out. She explains to me "I'm pretty addicted to magazines, fashion blogs, instagram…I was reading my grandmothers Vogue magazines when I was 13".
Rachael crystallized her aesthetic for Caughley, the shop, by going back to these old Vogue images, and cutting them up. It is a act that seems distinctly analogue in todays Instagram and Pintrest filled, tech-savy world. Rachael uses these images to shape her mood board of who the Caughley customer is. Johnny Depp, Kate Moss, along with Parisian chic models are patched into a visual representation of what Caughley was looking for when she partnered with brands.
Rachael crystallized her aesthetic for Caughley, the shop, by going back to these old Vogue images, and cutting them up. It is a act that seems distinctly analogue in todays Instagram and Pintrest filled, tech-savy world. Rachael uses these images to shape her mood board of who the Caughley customer is. Johnny Depp, Kate Moss, along with Parisian chic models are patched into a visual representation of what Caughley was looking for when she partnered with brands.
"I'm pretty addicted to magazines, fashion blogs, instagram…I was reading my grandmothers Vogue magazines when I was 13"
Part of the immersive experience of going to Caughley is seeing what Rachael has picked and understanding her aesthetic. Caughley calls it "timeless, ageless fashion with a rock and roll edge". Classic and clean, but able to be worn by a daughter, a mother and a grandmother. Simple style, with an edge. The twist is in the tension, that often goes unspoken, in the clothes she picks. Masculine and feminine, rock and roll and classic, good girl meets bad girl, hard and soft. For her it is all about quality and constrast.
Wellington, Dunedin, Shanghai, London
Rachael has already seen a slice of the world - it's helped her understand herself, and what she wanted to create in opening Caughley. She was born in Wellington and had "an awesome childhood". After school, she decided to study politics and marketing in Dunedin. Over her time in Otago, she worked at 'Slick Willys', who supply cutting edge fashion to Dunedin-ites. She loved her experience working on the shop floor, and found that she learnt how to make people feel good about themselves through fashion as a tool. By the end of her degree, she was looking for a new opportunity so took up an internship in Shanghai with 'Web 2 Asia'. It was only supposed to last the summer, but in the end lasted almost 2 years. "It was naiveity" she laughs.
"It was a rat-race - I asked myself - why was I doing it?"
Shanghai, she notes, was fantastic to start with. It was full on partying, eating and embracing the city and the other ex-pats she was with. After 2 months, however, she had run out of money and needed to re-focus. While Caughley had job working in the multi-billion dollar industry of online shopping in China, Ali Baba and T-Mall, she found herself disillusioned by the money driven the e-commerce world. It was a rat-race not in line with her own values (Ali Baba and their subsidiary, T-Mall, have a monopoly on western brands in China).
After a brief visit to London, where she considered moving because some of her friends has, she knew that it was only going to be tougher to hack it there, especially as she had started making plans for Caughley. She decided to go back to New Zealand, and sow the seed of the shop. But going from working in the e-commerce world to seting up a bricks and mortar shop has not been without controversy.
"You have to be really, really good"
Finding brands to support Rachael and invest in her brand was an interesting experience for this young entrepreneur. "I had nothing to show them. I also didn't want to get the same brands as other places around Wellington" she points out. "They really had to trust me". Caughley also doesn't have an online presence - yet. But that may change in the future. For now, Rachael loves being on the shop floor, but knows that an online store will have to come. "Right now, I am just really focused on the people who have decided to come and check out the shop".
"I've had a thousand people say to me 'Why are you setting up a shop? Retail is dying'. I was like - you know what? It means you have to be the best at it to survive." Caughley has shaken off these comments and shown her nay-sayers that people still want good retail - particularly in Wellington. People still want to touch and feel what they buy, before they buy it, and have a personal experience with shopping.
"People still want to touch and feel what they buy, before they buy it, and have a personal experience with shopping."
Rachaels secret to making it work is hardly a secret - "Listen to your customers, keep your eyes open all the time, and believe in your gut. It is so important for me to be on the shop floor, to be in touch with what Wellingtonians want. You learn the most from your customers." It seems Caughley knows that Wellingtonians "do" curation, and if a business doesn't curate wisely, the business doesn't survive. But by that criteria, Rachael is certainly here to stay.
CAUGHLEY'S PICKS
Pima Cotton T-Shirt - 6397 (a label from New York City)
Blazer - Harman Grubisa
Jeans - Kitty Vintage res denim jeans
Gold Hoop Earings - Sterling Silver and 18K gold - Wellington born Alexandra Dodds
Cork and Copper Heels by Sydney and Brown. Handmade in LA out of environmentally friendly products.
Surrealism at Te Papa is where it’s at this winter with these wonderful events…!