Model and Juliette Hogan muse Derya Parlak in Juliette Hogan, 2009.

So, 20 years on, what does a Juliette Hogan design have to offer people now?

“I want to constantly push myself. As a business I want to keep us moving forward,” she says before taking a sip of her rosé. She’s earned it. “I haven’t really been drinking lately as I’ve been trying to stay focused these past few weeks.”

When we meet, she’s in the middle of closing up shop on Ponsonby Rd after being a fashion stalwart on the strip for the past 17 years. She opened her first store, at number 170, in 2007 before moving up to number 182 in 2018. Having three Auckland stores felt unnecessary in the current climate. Scaling back to her two other Auckland stores in Britomart and Newmarket, along with stores in Wellington and Christchurch, allows her to future-proof the business.

Juliette Hogan Winter, 2014. Photo / Norrie Montgomery.

“There will always be a place for bricks and mortar retail as it’s such an important part of a brand story, but during Covid people became far more comfortable with online shopping than they ever had been. When I first started out, bricks-and-mortar retail and wholesale accounts were the only way that you could connect with your customers. Now you can build a community in other ways, like newsletters and social media.”

Her staff of 35 people working across head office and retail also requires Juliette’s undivided attention. “We have to keep looking at new initiatives; ways that we can be doing things,” she says. “Having these milestones is amazing because you can say ‘look at what we have achieved’. Every couple of years we’ve done something new. I like that momentum of moving forward.”

Her right-hand woman, Alice Feutz, is Juliette’s art director and design lead. Having joined the company in 2017, Alice says Juliette is a perfectionist who expects the best out of people.
“Working with Juliette feels effortless. We are so in tune with each other,” says Alice. “She challenges me and is always open to hearing my ideas. I have learned so much, in my personal and professional life.”

“Something that sticks out is her eye for the perfect shade of beige,” says Alice.

It’s this particular attention to nuances like colour and texture that has helped shape Juliette’s cohesive collections. I tell her I’m not surprised she’s a perfectionist.

A metal polyester blend dress from autumn/winter 2008. Photo / Babiche Martens

Is she a control freak?

“Over the years I’ve learned to let go,” says Juliette “but I’m very particular.”

Having sat next to her as a board member of Mindful Fashion New Zealand — the industry not-for-profit that works to build a circular economy and a sustainable future for the fashion industry — I’ve witnessed first-hand how Juliette has stepped into her role as chair of the board with the same ease it takes to slip into one of her perfect blazers. She’s decisive and articulate, much like her clothes.
“I like to have a lot of clarity. I have very high expectations of people around me, which possibly is a downfall of mine” she admits. “Maybe not a downfall, but it can be challenging because I can be hard on myself. But when you find people it makes sense with, it becomes easier.”

Mindful Fashion’s chief executive Jacinta Fitzgerald is one of those people.

“Over the past couple of years I’ve had the privilege of working with Juliette in her role as chair of Mindful Fashion, and I have come to know her as a strong, smart businesswoman,” says Jacinta. “She is entrepreneurial, not afraid to take risks, compassionate, and is decisive and direct — all qualities that make her stand out as a leader.”

The 'Dollhouse' dress from autumn/winter 2008. Photo / supplied

It’s a directness reflected in her designs, which have naturally evolved from those earlier days of fastidiously caped bows and taffeta cocktail dresses into much more relaxed collections that combine the practicality of sportswear silhouettes with luxurious fabrics.

When her customers needed sunglasses, she launched them in 2016. When they needed clothes to mooch about at home in, she created a line of louche knitwear. When they wanted to get married, she offered a bridalwear category.

“I’m also conscious that we have a higher price point given the majority of our collection is made in New Zealand. But I also love that our clothing transcends ages. We have customers in their early 20s purchasing dresses for graduations and 21sts. We also have customers in their 70s and 80s buying the same dress. There’s a beauty in how we design that is ageless.”

On the runway at New Zealand Fashion Week 2009.

She’s emotionally connected to dressing pivotal moments in people’s lives — like Jacinda’s wedding dress. Or a cancer patient requesting their final casket dress be designed by Juliette. Or another client’s son wanting to wear a dress to his formal.
“To be able to provide comfort and confidence to somebody through the way they present themselves is still an absolute privilege.”

Des Rusk of Wall Fabrics has worked with Juliette for over a decade and says there’s a clarity to the way she designs that makes it easier to understand.

“It’s always clear overall on what she is trying to achieve. She looks for quality and interesting textiles that others might overlook, be it a texture or the structure of a fabric.

The 'So Pretty It Hurts' collection, autumn/winter 2010.

“She also has a clear idea of her vision and her handwriting. It’s exciting to be involved with her early on in the design process. She is open to exploring new types of fabrications, and approaches things from a collaborative point of view.

“Her team is wonderful to work with and carry on this collaborative approach. They all have real buy-in, making for a cohesive process.”

Juliette and I reflect on being in our 40s, an age where we’ve found ourselves as the conduit between an industry that came before us and held things close to their chest, and a new generation of fashion designers more open to the concept of collaboration.

“I think we’re still a closed-book industry,” says Juliette. “We’re also at a stage in our careers where you feel like you have to steer the business and the industry in a different direction.

Spring/Summer 2014

“The first five years of my career was about figuring out who I was as a designer. The next five years were about understanding how to lead a team. Then you begin to think about strategy and what business growth could look like.

“I had children in between too, so I’d ask myself ‘How do I be a mum, a business owner, and a leader at the same time?’”

Despite her significant contribution to the way New Zealand women think about getting dressed each day, she admits she has never felt like the kind of designer people necessarily fawn over.

“I’ve been very consistent with my design, but I also have never been that fashion darling. I struggled with that when I was younger. I’m a very literal thinker. I’m not very lateral in my approach to design, and there were people coming through who were very creative. I knew that I would never be able to compete on that stage.”

A full-length gown from autumn/winter 2016.

Yet her clothes do inhabit a creative spirit, thanks in part to her passion for print. Her degree at Parsons focused on textile design. The prints are often abstract, meandering colours and shapes that on closer inspection could be a bouquet of enlarged flowers; diaphanous geometric shapes; or prints created in collaboration with leading female painters including Carmel Van der Hoeven, Helen Dean, and Hannah Fox.

I love how prints tell such a story about a moment in time. It anchors the colour story of a mood board.

“That makes a lot of sense to me. It’s part of the design process that I like the most, bringing those prints to life and choosing all the supporting materials around it so there’s a beautiful, cohesive offering.”

In a milestone year, she’s been reflecting a lot on her personal life too. As a mother of two daughters, Juliette is not only shaping the way we dress now, but also the way the industry can do better, most notably in her role at Mindful Fashion.

Spring/summer 2018. Photo / supplied

“Ultimately, what I do is about nurturing people and making people feel comfortable. I have the headspace now to think about the wider industry. I care about it. I care that there is an industry in New Zealand and how younger designers will be able to navigate it. As you get older, your purpose changes. With small children, I’m thinking ‘What is their future going look like?’”

Her maternal instincts come into play in between our cover shoot when photographer Babiche Martens introduces her daughter Seraphine to Juliette, the 6-year-old telling her she wants to be a fashion designer when she grows up.

Juliette offers Seraphine felts and paper to sketch her own unbridled designs. In a space that requires so much adulting, Seraphine’s presence is a reminder of why so many people are drawn to working in fashion in the first place — it’s an industry that encourages self-expression and creativity.

The cover of Viva, 2015, at The Farmhouse in Parihoa. Photo / Olivia Hemus

“My mum used to teach me and my sister how to sew when I was 12. My sister didn’t take to it, but I loved it. Sewing became a comfort to me when I was studying at Parsons, so I desperately want my girls to grow up and learn how to sew.”

Is she teaching them? “Dan, do you really think I’d have the patience to teach them?” she asks laughing.

If Juliette’s methodical approach to navigating 20 years in business is anything to go by, something tells me she does.

The brand is synonymous with classic, relaxed tailoring. A look from its current suiting collection, 2024. Photo / supplied