Spring styling with Palones
Palones pastel colour block trench £145 and checked trousers (coming soon)
I have featured Palones in my edits a few times and I’m continually impressed with their ethos, way of working and commitment to sustainable practices. Plus, their clothing is spot on when it comes to colours, detailing and classic pieces with a twist. The spring/summer 21 collection is full of pastel colours and British summer vibes ready for picnics, days out with friends and drinks in the sun.
Making beautiful pieces, that last, are trans-seasonal and have a quirky element, is no mean feat. But Palones does it beautifully creating a truly inspiring collection that will see you through for years to come. They believe that feeling good in your clothes is a must so they put a huge emphasis on fit to ensure everyone who wears their clothes feel confident and happy.
In addition to fit, beautiful clothing and sustainability, they also keep the price of their clothing at a very reasonable bracket. A shirt will set you back about £70 and a trench £145. Not bad for a sustainable independent brand.
I had a chat to Petrie Randles, the Brand Director at Palones to give us a bit more insight into this wonderful brand…
CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND AND HOW YOU CAME TO START AT PALONES?
After 10 years as a buyer working for some of the biggest brands on the British high street I decided I wanted to work for a smaller brand where I could work with better quality product and with more freedom. I moved to Palones one year ago at the beginning of 2020 and have never looked back!
THE PIECES ARE TRANS-SEASONAL. WHY WAS THIS IMPORTANT TO YOU?
We are passionate about making our customer’s wardrobe work hard for them! We hate the idea you would discard your Palones after a season and want each piece to be versatile enough to be worn whatever the weather!
Grey trench, £185. White puff sleeve shirt, £79
YOUR DESIGN BACKGROUND IS CLEAR FROM YOUR QUIRKY DETAILING. WHAT IS YOUR DESIGN PROCESS LIKE AND WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR INSPIRATION?
I’m afraid I cannot take credit for that! the designs are largely the brain child of our amazing design director, Kim. she has worked in the industry for years and draws her inspiration from many different sources including historical British fashion whether that is catwalks or pop culture references, music, and even architecture!
I LOVE HOW YOU CREATE SMALL RUNS. DO YOU THINK THIS IS THE FUTURE OF FASHION? SMALL RUNS OR EVEN PRE-ORDER SO THERE IS NO WASTE?
Thank you. I think that seeing more brands being able to cater sensibly for their market is one of the best things to come from 2020! As buyers we never know what we will sell, it is an unknown. But smaller runs allow for items to sell out and be re-purchased and that has to be a good thing. Pre-order is one way that we can control waste in the industry and I love that our customer has responded positively to it. I think if we are considering our purchases as really we should, then waiting a couple of weeks for the right item has to be worth it! That being said I totally understand the need for speed in a consumer centric industry, it is all a balance.
A MASSIVE PART OF THE PALONES ETHOS IS FIT. CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE TECHNOLOGY AND PROCESSES BEHIND THE FIT OF YOUR CLOTHING?
We are born of a manufacturer and as such we have an incredible pool of knowledge to draw on. We wanted to make sure great fit was at the heart of everything we do because ultimately clothes that fit well are the pieces we go back to in our wardrobes time and time again. We have amazing 3d imaging software that allow us to see a garment digitally before ever cutting a piece of fabric. This reduces waste but also allows us to check for common fit issues right from the start. We are also able to check the fit of a garment across all sizes, something that is very difficult for brands to do.
AND QUALITY? YOU MANAGE TO KEEP THE PRICE OF THE GARMENTS REALLY REASONABLE WITHOUT SKIMPING ON QUALITY. HOW DO YOU DO IT?
I’m so pleased that you can tell the difference. We have a longstanding relationship with our factories that allows us to have incredible quality control and we have an amazing line of communication to solve any issues that arise in manufacture. Lots of things go wrong when you make clothes but it is just being able to solve them!
CAN YOU TELL US A BIT MORE ABOUT THIS SEASONS COLLECTION AND WHAT IT IS INSPIRED BY?
After such a tricky year for everyone, this season we wanted to make people smile! SS21 Palones was inspired by all the highlights of the great British summer - we have ice cream pastels, and modern takes on picnic ginghams, even daffodil yellows! It is all there!
YOUR PACKAGING IS A BIG TICK WHEN IT COMES TO SUSTAINABILITY. CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE CVHANGES YOU HAVE MADE IN BECOMING A MORE SUSTAINABLE BRAND?
Thanks Anna, having plastic free deliveries is a big thing for us as there is nothing worse than getting an order and immediately filling up your bin with polythene bags is there! We also wanted our boxes to be re-usable for returns or anything else you need. That’s why we don’t brand the front. We try to use archive fabrics or deadstock fabrics to make our clothes wherever we can. This is to reduce unnecessary processes and ultimately pollution and water waste which the industry is famed for. We also try to encourage slow fashion. We only have 8 drops a year and we don’t put our product on sale after a few weeks. We also frequently re-shoot our product for the new season, showing how you can keep wearing it!
ANYTHING EXCITING COMING UP IN THE FUTURE? WHAT’S NEXT FOR PALONES?
A great question! It has been such an exciting year and we are so hopeful for the future of Palones. The most imminent event is that we are launching in Europe via Zalando in May which is very exciting for us as we haven’t had a big presence in Europe previously. We are also working on a rather exciting range for autumn winter! I can’t wait to show you all :)
Well I for one am excited already for the AW21 range. But in the meantime, the SS collection is giving me all the summer vibes, and I reckon we all need a bit of sun right now.
Take a look at the full collection over on the Palones website.
Anna x
