Sea Change

For Natalie Procter, it’s a juggle running Mina, her Auckland-based label, from the Mount, but relocating to the laid-back seaside location has had a positive impact on her designs ands her approach to life.

Shifting to the coastal Bay of Plenty has affected fashion designer Natalie Procter in unexpected ways. Beach walks, sea air and the pace of provincial living have altered her perspective both personally and professionally. “I can already see how much my move and change in lifestyle has influenced what I design,” says the creative force behind New Zealand-made clothing brand, Mina. “What I wear at the Mount versus what I wear in the city is so different, I just want to be in something easy. I don’t want too much fuss.”

However, living between two cities has not been simple. Her clothing store, design studio, staff, friends and parents — Natalie is in business with her mother Michelle Procter — remain in Auckland. Yet home base is 230km south, just around the corner from Omanu’s surf club, alongside partner Sam Gunn. Since the couple’s seaside move late last summer, business has boomed and Natalie has had to spend extra time at the Grey Lynn company headquarters hiring and training new staff, and relocating her studio.

“The commuting can be tricky,” she says. “It’s been a lot tougher than I thought. But I just love being at the beach. It’s not till you get out of the city, you realise how stressful and busy it is.

“Through Covid, I’ve been trying to find that good work-life balance that’s so hard when you’re a business owner. At the Mount, I can kind of breathe and relax. I’m definitely forced to chill, which is really good.”

Natalie was 23 when she launched Mina in late 2017, on the back of a fashion degree, a prestigious fashion business scholarship trip to India and a couple of brief internships in her chosen industry. High school years were jammed with design, art, photography and fashion studies, in-between dancing and 5.30am rowing commitments. Before that, the only child of a Kiwi father and creative South African-born mother acquired pottery, papier-mâché and sewing skills early, thanks to the informal craft workshops her mum hosted for neighbourhood children. While friends happily traipsed off to chain stores for their clothing, young Natalie resisted shopping and preferred to develop her own style. None of which prepared her for the realities of running a fashion company and navigating through years of Covid-induced disruption.“I had no idea what I was getting into. It’s been a hard slog. Especially starting the business so young; I was very fresh and naïve. There was tax and GST and paying bills and margins and looking at wholesalers. Nothing you learn at uni helps with that, it was very uphill learning. But I think that’s the best way to learn.”

Even before graduating, Natalie knew she wanted to produce sustainable clothing designed for longevity rather than any passing trend. Eyes were opened and ideas blossomed during a six-week Prime Minister’s Scholarship-funded trip to India where she met organic cotton and silkworm farmers, block printers and high-end boutique owners.

→ Summer Brim in Floral White and Day Shirt in Floral.

↓ Summer Brim in Emerald, Mina Tee in Coriander and Mali Pant Cropped in Mocha.

← Natalie at her Auckland headquarters (also opener).

Eventually, she settled on building a business that supported New Zealand sewers as well as local suppliers of unused ‘deadstock’ fabric leftover from international fashion houses.

Having found a part-time retail job and moved home to save money, Natalie invested her own savings and some parental funds to launch Mina from the family craft room. The next step was a co-working space, then a showroom off Auckland’s Karangahape Rd, with a focus on supplying retail stores with her designs.

When Covid struck and retailers closed their doors, she moved her sewing machines, pattern table and business base back to the Procter abode and regrouped. In December 2020, the Mina retail store opened its doors between Covid lockdowns.

There has been plenty of whānau support along the way, most notably from Michelle. “It’s awesome working with Mum, there’s nothing she can’t do. When I started the brand, I asked if she could give me a hand. Now she works for Mina full time. She’s a really good problem solver, a very practical person who can get shit done, or figure out who to contact to get it done.”

Michelle is production manager, liaising with the contractors who make their patterns, samples and final garments. Natalie leads the design side of the business and sources the silks, linens and cottons that dominate her range, while father Brent is a sideline cheerleader with financial expertise. “Dad is my biggest supporter. Mum and I are a lot more cautious but Dad’s more like, ‘go for it, you’ve got to spend money to make money’.”

← Natalie is focused on creating long-lasting, sustainable pieces. ↓ A rack featuring some of Mina’s recent summer collection.

That mix of careful, incremental growth and a little risk-taking has paid off. Sales have increased markedly in the last 18 months and Natalie is confident her company is in good shape. She hopes the expanded team will grant her more flexibility, so she can spend more time designing from home and feel Omanu Beach sand between her toes more often.

Mina shoppers can expect to breathe more effortlessly in their clothes, too. “I do think about my own lifestyle. But it’s not just me. Post-Covid, more people are working from home and wanting clothes that are easy and comfortable. That’s definitely influenced the types of styles we do.”

Looking ahead, Natalie is aiming for continued business growth within New Zealand — perhaps including a store in Mount Maunganui one day — and hopes to move into the Australian market soon.

“I’d also like to see more brands supporting our local production industry here, instead of taking their production offshore. Our industry needs the support.” Ⓟ minaforher.com @minaforher