Hot City: Sydney (Part 2)

It’s time for the 2nd part of our look around Sydney! 

Photo by Kamran Baig 

If you missed it, you can read the 1st installment here which showcased Natalie’s choice of the 3 best bars in the city.

Natalie has been living in New South Wales for 2 ½ years and loves a good shopping expedition!  So today we are showcasing her top 4 home products boutiques. 

We’ll be looking at their fantastic product ranges (and in some cases, the merchandising of the products in store) that make these Sydney retailers stand out from the crowd.

From eclectic & exotic to chic & understated, these retailers all have their own unique style. 

First up is a recent discovery by Natalie….

RUBY STAR TRADERS

Karin Gardiner started Ruby Star Traders 17 years ago and is still the sole owner.  Karin, an ex lawyer, has always loved textiles and has travelled extensively allowing her passion to evolve in the wonderful mix of homewares, furniture & stationery that make up the range the company now sells. 

L O V I N G these bright colours & tropical prints!

Where possible they purchase from the traditional craft regions in India, where the products are produced by craftsmen working in traditional workshops. Purchasing in this way means Ruby Star Traders are helping local craftspeople to keep their skills alive, and helping create a steady source of income for families in these regions.

Over 90% of the range is therefore sourced from India, with additional pieces purchased from Nepal, Pakistan and Uzbekistan.

Products are also designed exclusively for Ruby Star in line with current trends. The result is an eclectic and vibrant mix, combining the latest in international designer trends with traditional Indian craftsmanship.

Ruby Star Traders showcases 2 ranges a year and the best way to view the current range is to visit their website www.rubystar.com where you can download the latest catalogue and view their whole product range at your leisure.

The Sydney showroom/retail shop is open to the public and the entire range, together with many one-off and unique pieces, is available for purchase:

Sydney Showroom & Shop address:

10 Bridge Road

Glebe

NSW 2037

Sydney

02-9518-7899

www.rubystar.com

If you’re struggling to decide what to buy our advice is to invest in a Ikat chair or cheer yourself up with a BOP pouffe:

From colourful & decorative we now move to subtle & stylish by visiting…

PAPAYA

Papaya, in Westfield Bondi Junction, is a sanctuary of homeware delights cocooned in a shopping centre where customers can indulge all of their senses.

Papaya was formed with a desire to create an innovative, timeless yet contemporary homewares brand.  Their range of products is simple, pared-down and stylish.  Drawing from nature, Papaya’s products create a harmonious amalgam between the unspoiled beauty of raw materials and the understated clarity of contemporary design.  There is something wonderfully calming and authentic about their product selection.

Papaya produce 2 collections each year – the Spring/Summer collection is launched in August, and the Autumn/Winter collection in early February.  In addition, throughout the year, they introduce unique items chosen for their exceptional design and texture. 

You can view their current catalogues here.

Papaya’s inspiration and motivation is to recapture the soul that exists in all items made with the time honoured skill and the aptitude of experienced hands.  This accounts for the sensual and tactile nature of their products.  Plus, during the development & negotiation stages of production, Papaya takes care in ensuring all workers involved are paid a fair living wage, in line with their belief in the dignity and respect that should be inherent in all forms of trade. 

A company after our own heart!

Let’s take a look at their shop in the Westfield Shopping Centre:

The layout is relaxed, informal but ordered.  It reflects the neutral palette of much of the Papaya product range and creates a welcoming space in which to explore. 

The merchandising is brilliantly done – bringing products together in eclectic combinations that help to show customers how different pieces can work together successfully and inspire their interior design projects:

Papaya is located at:

Shop 5015, 5^th Floor

Westfield Shopping Centre

Bondi Junction

Sydney NSW 2022

Ph 02 9386 9980

www.papaya.com.au

And now for a Master Class in merchandising, we head to…

BECKER MINTY

BECKER MINTY is an eclectic lifestyle concept with stores located in Potts Point and Woollahra.  The first store opened in Potts Point in 2007 with product lines including furniture, art, ceramics, glass, antiques, jewellery, clothing, books, rugs, candles, cushions, lighting and more!

Now you might be thinking “that’s an awful lot of different products to try to bring together under one roof”…but fear not, because what the BECKER MINTY team don’t know about merchandising simply isn’t worth knowing!

Hunter Gatherer Chic!

Y E S

The founding owners and Directors are Christopher Becker and Jason Minty, with James Vaile joining BECKER MINTY as Director and CEO in 2009.  All avid collectors and travellers, they search extensively for unique objects and cultural experiences to celebrate and share with the BECKER MINTY clientele.

I’ve been writing some articles recently, trying to encourage retailers to undertake a degree of product editing on behalf of consumers.  Consumers are looking to retailers to streamline so they don’t feel so overwhelmed, overloaded and confused by the choices that confront them in store.  It’s about helping them to see things more clearly by only offering them great choices rather than just lots of choices.  To do this well you have to really understand your customers because they will only ‘buy into’ this arrangement with retailers they truly trust! 

BECKER MINTY understand this perfectly and have taken great time and care to develop a dialogue with their clientele.

Their ethos is to offer “the best of everything” and everything in each BECKER MINTY store is selected for its quality and uniqueness. Their aim is not to find the least or even the most expensive product of its kind, rather the onus is in the consideration, the quality, the passion and the beauty of each object that they offer. 

Whilst having a Gallery style layout, the stores are approachable, friendly and welcoming, with staff giving information and educating when it is encouraged and respecting those who wish to be left to make discoveries for themselves. 

The BECKER MINTY Flagship Store is open 7 days a week: 10.30am – 6pm

Shop 7 Ikon Building

81 Macleay Street, Potts Point.

NSW 2011

Ph: +61 2 8356 9999  

www.beckerminty.com

If you can’t get to the flagship store then visit the Online Store which has made the BECKER MINTY experience available worldwide.  Hooray!

And if you fancy enjoying BECKER MINTY interior styling whilst sipping champagne (and who wouldn’t!) then head over to Velluto Champagne & Wine Bar found behind a lushly draped black velvet curtain at 7/50 Macleay Street in the heart of Potts Point (entrance at the corner of Baroda St & Fitzroy Gardens):

And as we reach the end of our 2 part look at Sydney let’s close by visiting…

LAZY BONES

The idea for lazybones grew from a desire to offer light cotton sleepwear that didn’t look like something that your Nana would wear!  The product range has blossomed and now includes quirky and vintage inspired sleeping and lounge wear made from lovely, soft, light natural fibres, as well as bedding, cushions, quilts and more!  

As you will see if you download the lazybones catalogues, the model in the Women’s Winter Collection has stolen my dream life….which basically involves wafting about the house in lovely lounge wear looking blissfully happy doing not very much at all (I’d probably waft about with a cocktail…I’m assuming the models martini glass is just out of shot in the catalogue ).  I digress…

lazybones started 10 years ago and was successful from the get-go.  They are now stocked in over 250 stores worldwide and sell to all Anthropologie stores in the U.S. (and the 2 stores in London), and have a number of other stockists around the U.S. and New Zealand as well as extensively throughout Australia. 

The ‘Holiday’ pillowcase pictured above is one of my favourite items in the lazybones range.

It would look great on a hammock!

lazybones manufacture in Bali and have forged wonderful working relationships with their large factory team.  They endeavour where possible, to use natural fibres and processes that are kind to Mother Earth with all possible environmental sensitivity!

There are 2 lazybones retail stores:

One in Paddington in Sydney at:

461 Oxford St, Paddington.  

Hours of opening Monday to Friday 10a.m until 6pm

Saturday 10am until 5pm

Sunday 11am until 3pm

The other store is in Northern NSW in the gorgeous village of Bangalow.

Opening hours are Mon – Fri 10am – 5pm

Sat and Sun 10am – 4pm

.

The stores bring all of the lazybones ranges together (as you can see in the photo of the Paddington store below) so you are free to mooch to your hearts content:

Get aloada that fab wallpaper!!!

Of course you can also visit the lazybones website www.lazybones.com.au for a full list of stockists.

Finally…

A BIG thank you to all of the wonderful ladies from each of the companies featured today (Alison, Tracey, Cat and Gina) for supplying fantastic photos and helping to put this post together.

And of course…special thanks to Natalie!