For decades pyjama and loungewear labels have been the sleeping giants of the Australian fashion industry, but lockdown restrictions raised their profile, thanks to the iron-adverse working from home. As luxury labels attempt to lure us back into embellished dresses and tailored trousers, these reinvigorated brands are putting up a fight (no pillows required).

Papinelle founder Renae James shares the same origin story of many Australian labels, having studied fashion at the University of Technology Sydney and launching her business at Paddington Markets, but unlike fellow stallholders Zimmermann, Sass & Bide and Dinosaur Designs, the success of her 20-year-old sleepwear label has been overlooked, until now.

Papinelle sleepwear’s latest collaboration with New Zealand designer Karen Walker.

“We were always at the back right-hand corner of department stores,” said James. Papinelle is stocked in David Jones in Australia and Nordstrom in the US. “Honestly, during COVID-19, it was the first time we were brought forward in stores. We were also pushed onto the homepage of the Nordstrom website.”

With stores in Sydney and New Zealand, Papinelle had been experiencing steady growth, gaining increased attention with its popular collaborations with Kiwi designer Karen Walker, but the appetite for relaxed pieces during lockdown dramatically accelerated sales.

Having secured a relationship with Nordstrom before the pandemic, James saw Papinelle’s US footprint rapidly grow from 25 stores to 75 stores, to 100 stores during the lockdown period. “At one stage we were in the top 10 sleepwear sellers in the US. That’s unheard of for a non-US brand.”

These are not the Nutella smeared T-shirts and stained grey tracksuit pants that many of us found refuge in while working remotely. Washable silks, neat piping and bold florals found favour with those seeking a more polished approach to relaxation.

Now Papinelle is preparing for further growth, with James convinced by future orders that customers’ appetite for comfort and luxury will continue. It’s a view supported by her major Australian stockists.

“We definitely see this trend continuing as customers are seeking more choice in their sleepwear and loungewear and want a more fashion-focused offering,” said Bridget Veals, general manager of womenswear at David Jones.

While James finds that Papinelle customers experiment with bold prints in the bedroom, Brisbane-based loungewear designer and jeweller Chelsea De Luca is seeing her matching sets and lavish silk robes on the street.

“People wanted to spoil themselves and be comfortable during lockdown,” De Luca said. “Our orders show that this is continuing, except now people are wearing the pieces out with heels and jewellery instead of slippers.”

Sleepwear by Australian designer Chelsea De Luca.

De Luca’s prints are inspired by her Rita Ora and Beyoncé-approved jewellery collection, along with 1920s motifs and leopard spots.

“What has been surprising is that during lockdown and right up to today, people are ordering the most out-there patterns. They are also wearing them in surprising ways, turning the robes into dresses and using the sashes as neckwear.”

The designer attributes her rise in sales during lockdown to Australia’s growing appetite for luxury as well as a desire to support local labels.

“The fact that the pieces are made in Sydney resonates with many people,” she said. “People have been shopping more mindfully and supporting Australian businesses seems to be a big part of that.” To keep the momentum De Luca will launch a range of tunics and introduce an even bolder palette into her next collection.

Kate Waterhouse wearing her designs for Melbourne-based sleepwear label Wanderluxe.

The founder of Melbourne-based sleepwear label Wanderluxe, Sherri Kiernikowski, is experiencing a variation of survivor’s guilt, thriver’s guilt, following the extended lockdowns in her home city.

“It was a terrible circumstance but the best thing that could have happened to our business,” Kiernikowski says of the pandemic. “Because people couldn’t go anywhere we were selling pieces for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.”

Kiernikowski launched Wanderluxe in 2017, but it was during this year’s lockdown that she signed contracts with The Iconic and David Jones. “In the past two years we have doubled our business in terms of sales.”

With an eye to the future, Wanderluxe has collaborated with racing identity and fashion commentator Kate Waterhouse on pieces inspired by traditional men’s pyjama sets.

“There’s no going back on the growth we have experienced, in sales and in support on social media,” Kiernikowski said. “People want something that they can relax in and answer the door in. Oh, and you can sleep in it.”

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