after season, and with everything that’s gone on with Covid, I think people want excitement back in their lives with fashion,” Maria Kozub, Witchery’s head of design, told Inside Retail. The collaboration took 12 months and countless Zoom calls between the two teams: Witchery’s head office is in Melbourne, while Ellery is based in Paris.  The result is a 30-piece collection of dresses, tops, skirts, pants, denim and accessories, including footwear, handbags and jewellery, which look and feel noticeably different to the products that Witchery typically sells.  “The fabrications are quite sculptural, whereas our mainstay [product] is a bit more feminine and floaty. The fits are slightly nuanced as well,” Kozub explained. One thing that didn’t change – much – is the pricing, which ranges from $79.95 to $349.  “It was really important that this collection was affordable for our customers,” she said. Witchery plans to roll out more designer collaborations in the future as it looks to sharpen its fashion offering. The retailer took the first step in this direction last year, when it tapped celebrated Australian designer Toni Maticevski to create the shirt for its annual White Shirt campaign, which raises funds for ovarian cancer research.  In the lead-up to the launch of the Witchery x Ellery capsule collection, we spoke with Kym Ellery, about her design inspiration for the collection and her memories of shopping at Witchery as a teenager.  Inside Retail: Can you recall your first association with Witchery as a consumer? Kym Ellery: Yes, I loved to shop there! Growing up in Perth, it was fairly quiet so my favourite sport was to go shopping at the local shopping centre in search of some exciting new key pieces. One of my favourite items that I remember purchasing there was a loose white shirt, crisp and classic: the perfect wardrobe essential, even today. IR: What was your design inspiration for this collection? KE: My moodboard was full of references from nature, earthy and monochromatic tones, ‘90s shapes, architectural and furniture designs for texture and shape and historical images of eastern European embroidery.  But most importantly, for this collection, I wanted to create a wardrobe of forever pieces for our clients to collect and care for and wear for many years to come. I believe that quality fashion consists of pieces that you can keep forever and over the years experiment different ways to style and wear them, as both they and you pass through different phases of life. This is also a sustainable way to approach fashion and for us that is key. Ellery’s language is all about embracing volume, unique architectural silhouettes, classic pieces with a modern twist and unexpected details. We wanted the collection to keep that in mind and so we set out to create pieces that were both timeless and elegant. Our goal was also that the garments could mix effortlessly into various looks for all occasions. IR: How did the design process for this collection compare to your usual process?  KE: This collection has been very exciting for me to work on and I was closely involved each step of the way. I approached it the same way that I would approach designing any collection, just with a few extra cross continental meetings on Zoom. It’s really important to me that in fashion, there is a focus on great cuts, quality materials and craftsmanship and this collection touches on all of that. I was really impressed with everything that the Witchery team achieved during the process. IR: What do you think about the fact that this collection will make Ellery accessible to a wider audience? KE: Through this collaboration, we are excited to speak to a larger audience, creating for them the visual language of both brands coming together, each brand with their own identity now married in every piece. It was such a pleasure to find the line where they could intertwine together for this project and hope that you all enjoy wearing it as much as I enjoyed creating it.