Antipodium designers unveil the cheeky messages behind their clothes
Antipodium's designer shows how humour is haute, writes Tessa Chan
"It's a bit like the Texas of Australia," he says during a visit to celebrate the brand's launch at Harvey Nichols. "I grew up at rodeos."
He has lived in the English capital for nine years now, but it took him some time to break into the city's fashion circuit.
"After I finished school, I went on an exchange to France, where I ended up studying the principles of haute couture. Then I went to London for a week and fell in love with the city. I went to Central Saint Martins for my interview, and they said: 'Yes, yes, yes! Please, come and join us. And the foreign fees are ... " Finch laughs. "So I thought, 'Right, time to take the back door to fashion.'"
After heading back to Australia for a few years to work in fashion wholesaling, he tried his hand in London again. This time, he met Ashe Peacock, who had founded Antipodium one year earlier. "Back then, it was a shop and wholesale and PR agency bringing Aussie brands to Britain. I arrived and started interning with her in 2004, then ended up running the operation," Finch says.
It was when they made a capsule collection of their own designs that they captured the attention of the British media and buyers. "We noticed a gap in the market - and on our racks - for design-led wardrobe staples, so we started making up a few bits. Liberty saw it in the corner of the showroom and sent down British Vogue. It was just a few bits and pieces, and they were both like: 'Please, can you expand it?' That's when we started to get serious about it."