FASHION PROFILE
FAME
fortune THEN
WORDS ANNA RAWLINGS PHOTOS REBECCA SMITH
Innovator, self-taught designer, label maker, business owner and software developer Brad Pengelly is cut from a different kind of cloth; the epitome of a young entrepreneur creating success of his own design, all before he hits 30.
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lothing and garments have long been the fabric of 29-year-old Brad Pengelly’s entrepreneurial background. First was label Jamie Fame, refined garments of denim, leather and jersey; originally a menswear label established from a home garage that evolved into men’s and women’s wear, shoes and accessories. Then, there’s ongoing success in the niche of screen printing; the takeover of a business that resulted in a turnover increase of more than 1300 per cent over a three-year period. And now, complementing the screen printing endeavour, is the ‘Silicon Valley’-esque tap into the Sunshine Coast’s wave of digital innovation – developing a software application. “To go from designing fashion and shoes, to looking at user interfaces and functionality from software, it’s an unexpected turn,” Brad laughingly admits. “I think if I could draw a parallel between the two businesses it’d be that I’ve managed to find a niche for both of them. “When I see a new feature put into the app, it’s the same feeling I used to get when my clothing samples came back.” As an 18-year-old Sunshine Coast local, studying a business/ marketing degree at university, Brad began designing t-shirts with ‘punk anarchy’ slogans, for “beer money”, before officially launching now-established label, Jamie Fame, at 22 years old. Initially a menswear line, Brad capitalised on the burgeoning success to launch a jewellery line, and after picking up that the line’s XS and S men’s leather jackets were selling rapidly to women, he diversified to include women’s fashion, and shoes, and began manufacturing in Bali, with a breakthrough season in autumn/winter 2009. For eight years, Brad headed up the brand, with Jamie Fame at one point boasting just shy of 70 stockists internationally. That was until a slide in the retail environment and business turbulence, coupled with a desire to settle in Kawana with his girlfriend, Skye and their pet dog, saw Brad make the decision to let Jamie Fame run its course. “I still look fondly on that brand name … if I can take anything from the business as a whole, is that I learnt and it changed and bettered me,” he says.
BRAD PENGELLY AND ZOMBIE
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