A Cook Island Fashion Icon

LIFE VILLAGE

A Cook Island Fashion Icon

When we think of fashion our minds might travel to the catwalks and runways of Paris, New York and London; to the pages of Vogue, Vanity Fair or your favourite online shopping sites. In the Pacific we have our very own Fashion style and brands that have been influencing trends in dress making, patterns and designs for quite some time, and in Rarotonga we have our own leader in the Pacific fashion industry. Her story is inspiring, her brand is international and respected so much that Prince William and Kate Middleton wore her garments on their tour of the Pacific in 2012, but more on that later in the article. The label is TAV and the business woman behind it all is Ellena Tavioni.

Story by, Glenda Tuaine

I sat down with Ellena at her café Tuakata, next to her shop on the back road of Avarua. She instantly makes me laugh and admire her gumption when she informs me she started the café because she wanted to eat healthy and pass that on to her community. Not everyone can just choose to open a café, but Ellena is an astute business woman and as I discover in the interview, she cherishes every moment she has to make change.

“My philosophy is to make the most of your time of this planet. When you leave it make sure you did something constructive, don’t forget it is a privilege to be here. I love being on top of this earth, you can do so much. I value it, I don’t want to waste it. I only have 24 hours in my day and I don’t like it wasted,” and that statement is exactly how Ellena lives.

Raised in Rarotonga until her high school years when she was sent to Auckland, New Zealand, Ellena decided early on to take clothing and pattern making. At 16 she left school but could not afford to go to university, so she took a job with the National Bank which saw her transferred back to Rarotonga. That is when her dream of fashion began to take a hold.

“I walked into Uncle Mikes place, he was screen printing and I could see that fabric and my designs would work.” When Ellena mentions Uncle Mike, she is talking about Cook Islands Master Carver, leading visual artist, Poet and general Arts Icon Mike Tavioni, who is much admired and revered in the Pacific and internationally. At 19 she took a $2000.00 loan from the Housing Corporation and bought 2 domestic Pacific Runway 2019 (Dusk Devi Media)

sewing machines, some fabric and started making dresses. She then ventures out on to the Cruise ships that were calling into Rarotonga and begins to sell her wares on board. Her dresses were hot property not just selling a few each time but selling all of them! As she puts it, she realised then and there that there is good money in this! During that time, she meets a tourist who is at design school in Melbourne, and through that conversation she is motivated to pack up and head to the University of Melbourne to study.

“This was a hard time for me, I was studying design and fashion, paying for it myself and working part time, but I was determined. I worked in factories to further my knowledge because I knew then I would return to Rarotonga and establish TAV Design”.

In 1987 she did just that. With fashion being one of the most competitive businesses in the world, TAV designs has grown to be recognised not only as a Cook Islands brand but as a Pacific Identity. Ellena’s garments have featured on the cat walks of Australia, Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji, Samoa and New Zealand fashion week, with numerous stores in Europe stocking the TAV label and many Cook Island National representatives proudly wearing TAV clothing at international events.

What makes TAV recognisable is Ellena’s use of colour and block print. This signature look makes her clothing unique and often imitated by other designers. I asked her how she knows something works. “That has developed through trial and error,” she laughs. “You know, you just figure out people like certain things. For example, Germans like bright colours. You get to know what they like in various areas of the globe. I now look at a colour and think that will sell, I can tell straight away.”

Ellena goes on to say, “In fashion, colours and styles come in and that is all part of business, but you shouldn’t really worry about what is in. Fashion should be an individual thing. I know certain cuts are important, value for money is important, but I like people to be happy because I want them to come back. I don’t want them to be a one-time

sale! I want them to look great in my garments and come back again and again”. In 2012 over night TAV became an internationally talked about brand when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate, wore TAV at an official engagement in the Solomon Islands. That one image of them made the front page of the New Zealand Herald and many newspapers and TV snippets around the world.

“When it happened I didn’t believe it. I can’t remember who told me but I was at a friend’s house at the time. I asked if they could Google what those two in the Solomon’s were wearing. And then I thought, Oh damn, I couldn’t have done better than that!” I laugh at the irony, she was annoyed at herself for not giving something better, but the Duke and Duchess obviously thought her garments were perfect for them!

Ellena explains to me that the way this came about was a Solomon Island Official arrived at her store in Mt Eden, Auckland asking for something to present to the Royal couple when they arrived. Ellena grabbed the dress and shirt without really putting much thought into it, as she truly did not think they would wear them. She gifted them to the official refusing payment. Her act of generosity was paid back tenfold. “To be honest, when it happened it was a bit scary because of the media. At first they didn’t know what it was and were trying to figure out where the garments had come from and what the fabric was.

Some thought it was batik and then someone complained in the Solomon’s because she wore a Cook Islands label; but really we all felt lucky she wore something from the Pacific!” But it is undeniable that after that moment her sales and worldwide distribution took a healthy upswing with orders from the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand increasing, and countries she never dreamed would be interested in her clothing, contacting her.

In 2020 the business Ellena Tavioni started 33 years ago is a brilliant success story of determination, smarts and business savvy. She is constantly developing TAV to meet the market trends with her garments moving all over the world through her retail chain and online shop. I ask Ellena if there is one particular item she wants to expand on after all, all great fashion gurus have something that they just have to do? Her response, “Lol there is not one, there is many. I want to keep going and going. There is heaps happening in my head right now. We have done our bag, our wallet, our little pouch. We are moving into Men’s wear. We already know how to do swimwear, we have to make use of the TAV name now, there is always a lot to do.”

Sitting with Ellena is refreshing. This woman is all about seizing the day and making business work, understanding market dynamics, learning from her failures to anchor her for success. She builds her business to make her community better and unashamedly drives for healthy profit margins so that she can extend her business ideas and future, assisting others with business mentoring advice. She is an avid supporter of education and has contributed to directing many young people towards achieving their goals.

When I pose the question if she would pass the business on to someone and retire? She promptly responds, “Retire! If I am still alive I will still be working, there is no way I can retire – I will retire when I am dead. Why would I stop something I enjoy. It gives me a purpose every day.”