Clothed in fabric of success

Miranda Brown turns traditional Japanese techniques into modern fashion. Jeff Brass / Getty Images

Like many artists, Miranda Brown used to brim with talent and ideas but had no thoughts on how to make money from them.

Business terms such as "bottom line" and "point of difference" were a foreign language, and the textile artist was much happier up to her elbows in fabric dye than sitting around a board-room table.

Now, as she juggles the roles of entrepreneur, manager, technician and designer for her self-named fashion label, the corporate lingo rolls off the tongue with ease and building a business is something she feels qualified to advise others about.

"To a lot of artists and creatives, the business world seems onerous, highly commercial and technical," she says.

"But the marketplace is actually just doors opening and closing and you've just got to step into one of the lanes."

Brown took the plunge four years ago after experimenting with fabric art since her teens.

After graduating with a bachelors degree in consumer and applied sciences with a textiles and clothing major, the Cantabrian ventured overseas, ending up in a small country town in Japan.

There she mastered Japanese resist-dyeing techniques, called shibori, which, on New Zealand wool, have become the staple of her range.

Back home, Brown took a job dyeing screeds of fabric for the television series Xena and Hercules and, later, co-designing the Harrod army for the Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

She also found a market to sell her resist-dyed fabrics on a small scale to other fashion houses - Zambesi, Liz Mitchell and Kate Sylvester.

Although Brown knew her work was high-end, she still didn't have a clue about how to go about building a business from it.

Being made creative director for the Trash to Fashion wearable art event in Waitakere City in 2000 and 2001 was a "baptism of fire" where she learned valuable business skills and gained confidence managing people and dealing with clients.

Finally, it was time to become independent and she launched Miranda Brown at New Zealand Fashion Week the next year.

What started with shibori-dyed woollen scarves is now a full range of womenswear offering funky casual through to edgy suits, accessories, homeware and a few menswear items.

Brown uses natural fibres only - New Zealand wool, imported silks and linens - and her designs use bold colours and strong repeat patterns.

Themes are environmentally based, with this winter's range - The Dawn Chorus - based on the kereru, or wood pigeon.

"When you make something that is inspired from nature, you are honest to the design, letting nature speak and not just your own ego," said Brown.

Creating products that will last is also important.

"I want my products to be around forever. The throwaway culture concerns me immensely."

Miranda Brown is stocked in 30 fashion and lifestyle stores nationally, seven in Australia and two in the United States.

Brown is also among the handful of local designers who will be stocked in the Essenze retail stores, spawned from the Hoglund Art Glass Gallery in Parnell, which are set to start opening overseas this year.

Although having a chain of stores is a long-term plan, Brown is working hard to establish the brand first.

Winning a New Zealand Trade and Enterprise award in the first year and a grant from Creative New Zealand provided a $10,000 boost but, apart from that, Brown has funded the business herself so far.

A Subaru sponsorship helps in staging Brown's Fashion Week shows and regular catwalk shows at its dealerships nationally have helped grow brand awareness.

Last year, the business moved from Brown's home to a Henderson studio with five part-time staff.

She says the stress levels during the past few years, particularly involving finances, would have put a lot of people off.

"I can see why a lot of small businesses fail in their first year. It was intense living in a house dedicated to work."

A key to her success has been her willingness to put up her hand and say "I don't know" when she has found herself out of her depth.

A business mentor had been invaluable, particularly early last year, amid some financial and structural challenges.

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AN ARTIST'S PRIMER

Once an ambitious young artist unsure of how to develop a craft into a business, Miranda Brown now enjoys advising budding artists on how to get their ideas into the marketplace:

"To a lot of artists and creatives, the business world seems onerous, commercial and technical. But the marketplace is actually just doors opening and closing and you've just got to step into one of the lanes."

"Every time you believe in yourself, doors open. When you're not believing in yourself, watch them close."

"In order to live your dream you've got to think it, say it, then act on it."

"I am Miranda Brown Ltd. My mission [was] to create the best hand-dyed textiles that speak of nature's beauty. Then I started making a range and now I sell it around the world."

"A strategic plan that maps out your vision and how you will achieve it will be your life raft."