Less than two years out of university, New Zealander Maggie Marilyn has a contemporary label stocked at Net-a-Porter and a spot on the 2017 LVMH Prize shortlist. At a showroom appointment today, she described her style as laid back. “But also ambitious,” a PR rep corrected her. Savvy, too. Marilyn produces her collection entirely in New Zealand to manage costs, and she’s using local materials like shearling, which has a remarkably lofty hand on the raw denim jacket it trims in her new collection.
Marilyn’s aesthetic is aligned with her fellow antipodean, Kym Ellery. They share an abiding affection for ruffles and deeply flared pants. Marilyn is also a big proponent of the statement sleeve; she said that Jane Austen inspired the pouf shoulders and smocking you’ll find in this collection. (Fun fact: The 200th anniversary of Austen’s death is this July. That's staying power!) Those frills intermingled with sportier elements, like sweaters and dresses with ribbed athletic cuffs and track suits. She may live half a world away from the New York–Paris fashion nexus, but Marilyn has a keen sense of what’s trending. Now she needs to continue the hard work of refining her unique point of view. Her cool, hip-slung striped jeans would be a smart starting point.