4 Up-and-Coming Local Designer Brands That You’ll Want to Keep Your Eyes On
Our HONOLULU Fashion Week shopping turned up some standout brands we had to try.
Local designers selling apparel, jewelry, home goods and accessories filled the HONOLULU Fashion Week Marketplace this past November. Among the mix of long-established names—Sig Zane, Noa Noa and Tiffany Chou—we found a few fresh faces worth checking out. Take a peek into the minds behind these up-and-coming brands; we have a feeling you’ll be seeing a lot more from them soon.
1. Spark
by Sanna Myers
Photo: Courtesy of Spark
Sanna Myers studied fashion in Sweden, but after she moved to balmy Hawai‘i five years ago, she realized that her usual approach of styling layers upon layers wasn’t going to cut it. She needed pieces cute enough to go it alone. For her first line last year, Myers focused on minimal lines, in a dreamy palette of elegant solids and soft, understated florals. Her follow-up, a capsule winter collection launched at HONOLULU Fashion Week, included a crisp, clean array of column-esque dresses with thigh-high slits, slate trousers with architectural, layered details and polished, high necklines.
2. Plate Lunch
by Gregg and Cory Kaplan
PHOTO: COURTESY OF PLATE LUNCH
These two surfer-slash-artist brothers hail from the North Shore of Maui, but their high-quality, handmade pieces have turned heads across the state. The down-to-earth collection includes tees, caps and aloha shirts with graphic treatments that merge modern style with traditional Polynesian aesthetics. You’ll find indigenous botanicals splashed across button-downs in earthy tones of green, mocha or gray. The duo’s tees include dynamic flora patterns made from hand-carved block prints, as well as ones with cheery “Plate Lunch” logos scrawled across the front.
3. Yireh
by Emily Valdez
PHOTO: COURTESY OF YIREH |
Emily Valdez’s easy-to-wear pieces are low maintenance enough to throw on anywhere—perfect for her world-traveling lifestyle. Her aesthetic melds high-impact colors with boho details: Think bell-sleeved mini dresses, pompom-lined playsuits or loose harem pants in gloriously exotic Asian prints. Since we first spotted her sassy side-tie shorts and shifts this past spring, Valdez has released two new collections, donated more than $1,000 worth of products to charity and expanded to boutiques across O‘ahu and on the Mainland.
4. Adhira
by Suki Gottfried
PHOTO: COURTESY OF ADHIRA
When Suki Gottfried moved to India for school at 13, it was like a burst of inspiration. The country’s vibrant, detailed fabrics spurred her to start making her own pieces. Now, she designs classic, breezy dresses with feminine details—an off-the-shoulder sleeve here, a deep-cut back there—and an eclectic print story. Her current pieces keep it sleek and simple with solids: deep, passionate wines, timeless black and even a soft blush.
READ MORE STORIES BY NATALIE SCHACK
