Get to know the designers - Q & A
What inspired Reign the Label?
It all started with Bridget trying to find her dream wedding dress back in 2017. She had searched far and wide and couldn’t find ‘the one’. With a vision in mind, Bridget reached out to her close friend Jo, who was never too far from her sewing machine.
Jo had a previous history of making couture bridal gowns and offered to make Bridget’s dream gown a reality. The dress was a huge success and it led to Bridget asking Jo to make five bridesmaid dresses, six silk kimonos and an after-party dress, that Bridget danced the night away in.
Bridget’s wedding guests were amazed at how beautiful their creations were. This led to the idea of creating their own fashion label. They relished the experience of working together and were simultaneously at a crossroad in their career, both looking for something new. Realising the demand for unique bridal wear, Reign The Label was born.
How did you bring your previous experience and expertise into Reign?
Jo has had a varied and exciting work life. During her early days as a stay at home mum, she was able to devote a lot of her time to bespoke dressmaking. Her talents didn’t go unnoticed and before long business was booming. This passion was enjoyed for over 20 years, but then life threw her a curve ball and she had the opportunity to own and run her business in the construction industry, which became a very successful venture.
After selling her business and with her daughters now grown up she was ready to step back into fashion. During travels to Brazil to visit her husband’s family, she discovered an iconic footwear label, Melissa, which was known for its use of colour, high quality and quirky designs. She opened a store in Perth city, which enabled her to indulge again in her love for creativity and fashion whilst thriving on connecting on a personal level with customers.
This is where the pair met. Bridget had spent her whole career working in different facets of fashion, but at the time of meeting Jo, she was customising and selling vintage clothing. Bridget bought a pair of gold, glittery sandals from Jo’s Pop Up Store, and then Jo bought a retro skirt from Bridget’s Pop Up Store. With their love for all things fashion and colour a connection was quickly established.
After studying Fashion and Textile Design at Central Tafe, Bridget took time to travel to Europe which is where she found her love for vintage clothing. Over the years she was asked to style shoots with her vintage pieces and it was evident that she had a natural ability. This has led to an exciting career as a stylist, with over 10 years as the Channel 7 Perth Stylist as well as freelance styling for established brands like Karrinyup Shopping Centre, Sass & Bide, The West Australian, Perth Fashion Festival and the STM.
This helped her to identify trends and stay up to date in the fashion world. Bridget has an incredible eye for detail and a love for fashion. She needs to be immersed in a creative world to thrive and loves the variety that her career has offered her.
As you can imagine, the combination of Jo’s couture bridal experience and business skills, with Bridget’s styling and unique business history created the perfect recipe for Reign to be the success that it is today.
What are your favourite pieces from your current collection?
The Sofia Dress in black floral stands out for both Bridget and Jo. Already a popular style, it was worn by Carrie Bickmore on the Project and grabbed the public’s attention. The Sofia dress is a classic Reign style, and was inspired by one of the first dresses they ever released. The silhouette, colours, delicate embroidered mesh and versatility make it an obvious choice.
Have you got an all-time favourite piece you have designed?
When the burgundy floral brocade collection was released in 2020, it was an instant success. This collection incorporated a range of suiting separates, midi dresses and mini dresses in a luxurious, unique brocade which helped put them on the map. For this reason, this collection remains as one of their most memorable.
What does the future look like for Reign?
Bright and colourful! If Reign continues on the path they are on, there will be continued growth, more pop up stores, larger and more frequent collections being released and global expansion.
They will continue to maintain their vision of empowering women through the use of their uniquely feminine, colourful garments, giving their clients an outlet to express who they are through what they wear.
Reign will stay true to itself and continue to stand out from the crowd.
What is it like being a fashion designer in Perth?
Bridget and Jo wouldn’t change it, they love being in a coastal city that embraces colour and community. Perth loves to support local brands, which has created a nurturing and beautiful home for the label.
Can you give us a sneak peek into what is coming in the new collections for 2022?
You can expect new silhouettes including Baby Doll dresses, relaxed linen pieces, new in-house prints with vibrant hues in pink, lilac and green, whilst still incorporating more demur satin pieces in rich, beautiful colours.
Their spring racing collection has been inspired by their bestselling Sofia dress, with over 15 new styles created using delicate embroidered laces in structured silhouettes that will be perfect for race days, weddings and a myriad spring/summer events.
Bridget and Jo believe that this is their strongest collection yet and can’t wait to share it with you all. This will be dropping from September 2022, but sign up to the newsletter and follow Reign on instagram to be kept up to date with pre-orders and special offers.
Where do you get your inspirations for your collections?
Very often the fabrics! Bridget and Jo both take inspiration from the beautiful fabrics that they spend hours sourcing. They say that they fabric can talk to you and often dictates how it wants to be presented. However, the girls are always thoughtful of current fashion trends, colours and what’s happening around the world. Often inspiration will just pop into their heads and a new style is created for which a beautiful fabric is then sourced.
What does a day in the life look like for each of you?
Both Bridget and Jo live very busy lives! Jo starts her week in the construction industry, and looks forward to ending her week focusing on fashion, whilst also providing support to her beautiful family. Jo loves that Reign is her creative outlet and enables her to practice her love for fashion that spans over 40 years.
For Bridget every day is different and that’s why she loves fashion. She will either be styling at Channel 7 or Karrinyup Shopping Centre, working on her accessory label Bridget Hudson, spending time with her hubby, friends and family, and walking her little dog, Albert. Bridget is always taking on new freelance styling jobs although Reign is her real passion.
To conclude this blog post, it is clear that Reign The Label is a brand that is owned by two incredibly committed women, and the passion and love that they bring to Reign every day is evident. Bridget and Jo will continue to bring bold and vibrant collections to the Perth Fashion Market, and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for Reign. Watch this space, and of course ladies, wear Reign!
Jo is wearing the Lucy Dress, and Bridget is wearing the Bonnie Dress. Click on the links to shop their looks.