Buyer at fashion and apparel store Nikkou, Rachel Brown has been working in the fashion industry since she was just 18 years old. Coming from a background of Visual Merchandising across a multitude of brands, Brown started at Nikkou in February of 2022 when she was taken under the wing of Founder Tiffany Cooper to learn the ropes as a buyer.
Nikkou has two stores - Casuarina and Brisbane, Australia. Owner Cooper had a goal to curate a space for women of all shapes and sizes, offering an array of Australasian female led brands. Nikkou means sunlight in Japanese, and the stores are filled with products curated to bring sunshine into customers' lives.
Brown is also Store Manager in Brisbane, giving her personal and direct insight into what the Nikkou customer wants. As a buyer, Brown wants anyone who comes into Nikkou stores, no matter their age, shape, size or gender, to feel welcome, comfortable, and confident that there will be something special for them to take home. The store caters to women aged from 16 to 80 and aims to make anyone who puts their clothing on feel beautiful, confident and empowered.
Nikkou stocks Australian and New Zealand fashion labels led by women. When curating a portfolio of designers, Brown looks for unique, sustainable, diverse and good quality garments that are versatile and suit a variety of body shapes/sizes.
“We want to support women kick-starting their creative dreams, and it is important to us that we offer sustainable, classic pieces which our customers will have in their wardrobes forever.”
Sustainability is in focus for Brown as the Nikkou team has noticed a definitive shift in consumer values. Customers want information about where clothing is made, who has made it, how sustainable the materials and process are, and how sustainably the brand operates as a whole. Shopping and supporting local has been a longstanding value of Nikkou’s, meaning little adjustment has been needed in their buying but there have been lessons in how information is shared with the customers and community.
Brands at Nikkou reflect the coastal location of the flagship store in Casuarina, where life is carefree and slow. The boutique is located right on the beach, so it is important during warmer months for Brown to keep the store flush with pieces that are easy to wear and versatile for the beach goer. However, Nikkou also follows the normal seasonal trends of summer/autumn/winter/spring and stocks a variety of transeasonal and warmer pieces, alongside swimwear and accessories for the Euro-summer customer to stay stocked up and stylish on an overseas trip.
Brown buys in smaller capsules for most brands, but finds this can depend on the buy, what styles are on offer and how well she sees the styles relaying to Nikkou’s in-store customer.
“Tiff [Cooper] always tells us girls when making selects - ‘if it’s not a hell yes, it’s a hell no’ - and I use that saying as bible when travelling to showings.”
Brown looks to stock a variety of price points - from $80-500. Her background in visual merchandising allows her to mix a variety of brands and price points which tie together, building outfits for in-store visual merchandising and shooting content for social media. The buyer loves styling high-end pieces from brands like St Agni, with good quality affordable basics from brands such as Assembly the Label. This assists customers in building a timeless, seasonal wardrobe.
Stocking collections gives brands an opportunity to grow their audience in an intimate setting, outside of markets such as mass department stores. After two years of pandemic restrictions, customers are seeking a personalised shopping experience again and drawing these customers in store to try on a variety of brands has created a community of Nikkou customers that Brown now considers more friends than acquaintances.
“We all learn from one another - look out for one another. I am grateful to have made the business/customer relationships that I have since starting here at Nikkou.”
Like all businesses, the pandemic forced Nikkou to pivot and approach business from new angles. Connecting with wholesalers and their customer community has always been at the forefront of the Nikkou team's mind and Brown felt lucky to have options like virtual showings, and social media to continue sharing the excitement of the business in a personable way with customers.
This season, and in upcoming collections, Brown is seeing lots of sustainable material choices such as cotton and linen. Lots of colour is coming through and there has been a resurgence of crochet across all of Nikkou’s brands - which the buyer “will definitely be taking home.” Pieces that aren’t versatile or easy to wear dressed up or down are on the decline as customers look for garments that are effortless, relaxed and easy to style for various occasions.
If you are keen to join the Nikkou portfolio, reach out to the team at wholesale@nikkoustore.com.
“Feel free to share any recent catalogues, line sheets and share with us your brand’s journey! We love to get personal on these things!”
Shop Nikkou’s fashion and homewares in store in Casualina and Brisbane or shop online at nikkoustore.com
