ALCHEMY PRODUX + GORMAN COLLAB
We have recently undertaken a collab project with Gorman, below in an article from Ofkin on the Life Instlye blog that I thought I should share:
GREAT COLLABORATIONS: ALCHEMY PRODUX + GORMAN
This next collaboration was a match made in heaven: beautifully designed natural soy wax candles from the clever Sara at Alchemy Produx combined with the colourful and creative style of Gorman. What’s not to love? Sara talks to us below about joining forces with Gorman and what’s up next for their talented brand.
What drew you to collaboration? Why did you first make the choice to collaborate?
The appeal of collaboration for us was to inject some new product into our range and get the chance to work with some new materials; after 4 years in the biz, it was a welcome change. It also creates a bit of buzz around our brand and gives us something to talk about.
‘Lifestyle’ was one of the reasons Alchemy Produx launched in the beginning; I wanted to work for my self whilst doing something creative. Undertaking collaborations is just another way of being creative and keeping my business inventive.
What makes a good collaboration? What worked really well?
A good collaboration should equally represent each brand and should show the respect between brands involved. A mutual appreciation for each other is a good base for any project.
We only produced about 500 pieces for this project, I think this is also important, as it creates demand for the project and also makes it a bit exclusive.
How did your collaboration with Gorman take place? Talk us through the major steps.
Our collaboration took place after Lisa saw our product at a local artist market and made contact with a proposal, this was about a year ago now so it has been a long time in development.
Firstly Gorman provided us with a print artwork, which was the “Jig Saw’ print from their Aut’15 range, which was great because it saw the first bit of colour in Alchemy’s range and we also got to try gold foil printing. We also spent some time developing the glassware, the result being the black printed beakers, which added a point of different to our own range.
I went off and developed some unique fragrances which I felt would reflect the Gorman brand, after a sniff session we launched our exclusive fragrances which were a ‘Sage Flower’ and also a ‘Blood Orange and Fig’.
What benefits do you believe collaboration offers that you might not get working solo?
Well firstly I got to work with Lisa Gorman, how rad it that! But on a more serious note, this collaboration project has been amazing for our brand exposure, working with Gorman has given us wide exposure to our ideal target market and we are proud to be associated with this brand.
It has been challenging and rewarding working with Gorman, we were able to bounce ideas of each other and work to brief that was totally different and out of our comfort zone, which has produced an amazing final product.
What are some challenges you’ve come up against in the process? What did you learn?
Luckily the process what pretty smooth, the only issues we had were with the custom print artwork which was originally white based not blue. We have issues with the ink smudging; this lead to the introduction of the navy base, which I think works really well any way.
What advice would you give brands considering collaboration?
Be creative. Take risks and push boundaries.
What brands do you think have nailed collaborations previously? What are your favourite collaborations you’ve come across?
One of my favorite collaborations was the ‘Hunting Collective’ this was a project by the guys at Hunting for George and a not-for-profit organization, Waverly Industries.
This project saw 12 Melbourne creatives decorate a one of a kind timber clock; I believe this project was so significant because it was all created locally and because of its exclusive nature. It ticked all the boxes!
What would be another dream brand you’d love to join forces with and why?
I guess if I were to cross my fingers and dream I would say Karen Walker or Kenzo. I love their fun, mix-match, print based ranges, it would be so much fun coming up with a collab with either of these guys.
On that note, do you have any plans for more collaborations in the future?
We do have a few new collaborations in development, we are currently in talks with Australian and international artists in the hope of re-producing some of their artwork for a series of limited edition packaging with unique matching fragrances.
Later in the year, we are joining forces with an amazing local potter (top secret) but we will be working together to create another limited edition candle and fragrance, with the potter creating a unique vessel for the candle, which will be something very different for Alchemy.
We are also working on another candle with Gorman for SS’15; so watch this space!
If someone is reading this and would like to collaborate with you, or reach out to someone they’d love to collaborate with, what should they do?
I’d say just go for it! It’s such a great feeling opening your inbox and finding an exciting email like this and knowing that somebody else thinks what your doing is ace and wants to be a part of it. It’s important to remember that not everybody will want to collaborate, but its exciting putting your self out there and seeing what could happen.
Stay up to date with Alchemy Produx (@alchemyprodux) on Instagram here and Gorman (@gormanclothing) here.
