A young Hoppers Crossing woman has joined with three friends to bring the fabrics of west Africa and Vietnam to Australia.
Connecting via Skype, the four came up with ethical fashion label Madame Tay, where they source fabric and use tailors in Third World countries and have “transparent” prices showing a breakdown of costs.
Cara Morrissy, 26, a community development officer in Hoppers Crossing, said buyers could trace their garments to the tailors to find out what they were paid and the story behind the fabric design.
The garments will be on sale at markets around Melbourne within a few weeks.
Ms Morrissy was living in west Africa for a year when she discovered colourful fabrics in local markets, including the “lustful eye” design worn by women wanting to show they were interested in men.
Her friend Stephanie Chow, 28, who lives in Hanoi, found bright fabrics in Vietnamese markets, and during a Skype conversation the pair, who had studied together in France, decided to create a fashion label. They enlisted friends Christina Chen, 28, in Toronto, Canada, and Sarah Foster, 28, in Fitzroy and launched Madame Tay last week.
The fashion label name came from the fact Ms Morrissy had been living in west Africa while Ms Chow was in Vietnam. Both countries had been under French rule, so they adopted the French word Madame, while Tay meant ‘foreigner’ in Vietnam, Ms Morrissy said.
“We’re sourcing wax print fabric from Africa and silks and cottons from Vietnam,” she said. “We also have links to the tailors who make the garments. Most people have no idea where things come from or who have made them, but our garments list the tailors’ names.”
The label’s Third World tailors get almost a quarter of the retail price, which ranges from $40 for a shirt to $80 for a dress. They will be available online as well as at the markets.
