Barkers Blog

Wall Street is only the most famous movie about, well, Wall Street - the financial nerve centre of the world attracts big intellects and egos, and decisions made by the few thousand at the investment giants can have enormous implications for the entire global economy. A fact we're all acutely aware of right now, clearly.

But the reason so many films have been made about an ostensibly dry subject like trading, is that the stakes are liable to produce incredible drama. And next Thursday, May 10, the most anticipated Wall Street movie of recent times finally arrives in New Zealand, and reports suggest we're in for a treat.

"Easily the best Wall Street movie ever made", said no less an authority than the New Yorker, while AO Scott at the New York Times called it "aan extraordinary feat of film-making". When that pair are on board, you know the end product is going to be incredible. Kevin Spacey leads an all-star ensemble cast, including Demi Moore, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons and Stanley Tucci. 

Check out the trailer below, and if you want to WIN a double pass simply email info@bmc.co.nz with 'Wall Street' in the subject line. We've got 20 to give away, and the prize will be drawn on opening day, Thursday may 10.

In 2010 Steve Coogan, one of the greatest British comedians of his generation, returned with a six part TV show, which purported to follow him and fellow comic Rob Brydon's tour of fine dining restaurants scattered around the English countryside. 

In a style which makes fun of the overly-earnest Foodie culture, reality television and, particularly, ageing comedians, the pair's bizarre relationship and neuroses are exposed to riveting effect.

Last year the finest elements were cut down into a wonderful feature, directed by longtime Coogan collaborator Michael Winterbottom. 

We have ten copies of the DVD to give away, courtesy of Madman Entertainment. Check out the trailer below, then email info@bmc.co.nz with 'The Trip' in the subject line and your address in the body of the email. We'll pick the winners on Friday May 4th.

Click here to check out a selection of classic Barkers images from throughout our history.

It was a friday night, so there was only one place they would be found. Lord Nelson’s Steakhouse, an Auckland City institution itself, had played host to the same rowdy group of young men for years. Ray Barker and his staff came after the stores shut every week to eat, drink, swap stories and unwind after the mania that was Friday night trading. That would regularly see queues for the 14 changing rooms in Barkers’ flagship Queen Street store, and often see them take a cool $20,000 in an evening, which in the ’70s was
enough to buy a fairly handsome property.
This particular Friday was no different as far as the Barkers boys were concerned – they were supremely comfortable in the place, and having a great time. Over the course of the evening some guests on the far side of the room watched ruefully, wishing they were having as much fun, and eventually flagged Ray down as he walked past to ask what the occasion was.
“I said ‘we come here every Friday’,” recalls Ray, nearly four decades on.
Hearing an American accent, he asked the visitor what his group was doing here and, on discovering that he was an entertainer, Ray invited the group to join them for a drink. The night wore on, and got raucous as they had a habit of doing, and it was only toward the end Ray asked their newfound friends which group they were with.
“We’re called The Doobie Brothers,” he replied.
You know you’re doing something right when The Doobie Brothers – then one of the biggest bands on the planet – want to join your party. But it had been obvious that Ray had tapped into something with Barkers from the moment he opened for business on the corner of Victoria and High Streets.
Ray was 24 years old, and entering a market which many presumed to be saturated. There were 36 specialist menswear retailers in the central city alone, and the scene was ferocious from the first. Even before he opened his doors competitors tried to chop his business off at the knees, with his former boss Dick Chatwin, who owned a number of stores through the city, threatening suppliers
and wholesalers with cancelled orders should they deal with Raymond’s, as his first shop was known.
Unfortunately for Chatwin and his ilk, Ray was not easily cowed, and the suppliers saw something in him that gave them confidence he would make a go of it. It helped that he had one of the best salespeople in the city, a handsome, charismatic 18-year-old named Jeff Parsonson who would eventually buy in and become Ray’s business partner.
“Jeff was the extrovert,” says John Thode, a Barkers manager from the ’70s. “He was incredibly sociable – he knew just about everyone, and everyone loved him.” With Jeff out front working the room, Ray was free to concentrate on precisely assembling his vision. From the start he was determined that Barkers would create clothing under its own label, running counter to the whole market at the time, which was dominated by a few wholesale brands like Summit, Whitmont, Convair and Manhattan. Ray would spend days selecting fabric from local wholesalers and stay up late at night sketching out designs. These would be assembled in Tauranga and Manurewa, and in time dozens of other locations around the country during an era when New Zealand’s manufacturing base was infinitely larger than what it is today.
The store was an instant hit, becoming a mecca for a style-obsessed young men. While their girlfriends shopped at the Jennifer Dean bikini shop next door, guys would come in just to hang out and listen to music – the store was as much a social space as a retail store. Within a scant five months they had enough capital to open a second store on the retail juggernaut that was Queen Street. Before Westfield and suburban malls, Queen Street was far more central to New Zealand retail than it is today, and the move from the
slightly cultish confines of High Street to the biggest stage in the country signalled Ray’s bold, expansionist ideas very strongly. He took over a florist and a tiny clothing boutique and combined the two into the 100 Queen Street store which was to become the bedrock of the brand’s early years. 
Operating initially under the name Collars & Cuffs (a name recently revived for Barkers’ shirt club), it focused on the ‘body shirts’ which had proven Ray’s first smash hit. This was the early ’70s, the height of post-hippy, pre-disco excess, and figure-hugging rayon shirts, with extravagant collars were paired with very flared polyviscose trousers, most of which didn’t even have pockets lest they ruin the
sleek lines. At that time time there was no cooler outfit, and Barkers had effectively cornered the market, according to Thode, who found that early-mid ’70s era fascinating from a fashion perspective.
“It went through very dramatic changes,” he says. “When I started [in ’73] it was all about huge flares and very loud colours, but within a few years the look had moved on to much baggier pleated trousers, with slim, cuffed hems.”
Barkers was able to effectively lead the local scene through that period thanks to Ray’s regular world trips. He would start in Los Angeles and San Francisco, moving through London and Paris before taking in a different continental city each time – sometimes Milan, sometimes Amsterdam – always returning with a headful of ideas as to where the culture was moving.
With that international perspective in mind, it’s little wonder that the first group to really latch on to what Barkers was doing were Air New Zealand stewards – they were the most well-travelled guys in the country, and it wasn’t even close. A group of them befriended
Parsonson, and soon much of the crew was shopping at Barkers. But by the time the Queen Street store was established the clientele was growing much larger, and more diverse.
“We were very popular with entertainers of that era,” says Thode. “Singers and TV presenters were always in buying and borrowing. Barkers’ logo was often in the credits of local shows. The guys from Radio Hauraki were in a lot as well.”
But beyond the nascent celebrity scene – remember at this stage Hauraki had only come in from its pirate radio ship a few years earlier, and television was only a decade or so old – another, slightly more sinister element started to come through the doors.
“The Auckland gangsters would come through too, a real mixture of people,” says Thode. “Some owned strip clubs, and there were a couple of brothers, known as ‘the enforcers’, who apparently used to go round beating people up. The transvestites used to come down from K Road too. And all these people used to have large amounts of money, and buy a lot of clothes for cash.”
One in particular would go on to real infamy. Marty Johnstone was a key member of the Mr Asia syndicate, and while it has been erroneously reported in both books and a previous issue of this magazine that he was a Barkers employee, no one disputes that he spent a lot of time at the 100 Queen Street store. He had, in fact, worked alongside Thode, Parsonson and his eventual killer Andy Maher at Chatwin’s Richard Jones menswear, before leaving to head overseas. But the Johnstone who Thode encountered in
’75 was vastly removed from the kid who he had partied with a few years earlier.
“He was in a huge limousine, and had a whole lot of young women with him, along with a guy who looked particularly heavy,” says Thode of Johnstone’s first visit to the store. “Marty was a big, tall guy, and was wearing this huge fur coat, and dripping with gold medallions and rings. 
“He would come down and I couldn’t believe the amount of money he spent. He would buy two or three of everything, spending a huge amount of money.
“I would ask him what he was up to these days, and he’d say ‘Oh I’m just overseas now. I’m in the import business’. He was always really vague about it.”
Despite – or likely precisely because of – the slightly seedy glamour of some of its clientele, Barkers continued to flourish through the ’70s. The store was so popular that it was a constant battle to keep it in stock. Ray recalls closing one Christmas Eve with 27 pairs of jeans left in his store. That might not have been a problem, but that store’s name was Barkers Male Boutique & Jeanery – jeans were what they sold, and he had to spend all of January telling disappointed holidaymakers that with the local factories closed there was no way he could get more stock.
What moments like that crystalised in Ray, was a desire to find a larger store. 100 Queen Street had been bursting at the seams for a few seasons now, even after Ray had taken over the coffee shop underneath it still failed to meet spatial demand. He began scouting for real estate further up Queen Street, with a mind to create the hippest, most exciting retail store in the country.

Ray was still under 30 when he began that hunt, but the Auckland he was prowling was very different to the one into which he had been born. He grew up in Orakei, part of a family who ran Hardley’s, one of the biggest plumber’s merchants and sheet metal
manufacturers in the country. For a while every milk can in New Zealand came from their workshop, and there was an expectation that Ray would join the family business once he was finished at school – in the ’50s and early ’60s that was often a man’s lot.
It just wasn’t in Ray though. He had cultivated an interest in fashion starting early in high school, one that was cemented by a chance encounter which presented a window into what a glamorous world it could be. He was approached in his mid-teens and asked to model
for a fashion show at Milne & Choyce, one of a number of department stores dotting Auckland city. The show was a huge hit, thanks in part to the live backing from a very young Ray Columbus & the Invaders, and Ray was hooked. Sheet metal and plumbing never really stood a chance.
Still, he gave it a shot. But after spending a few years working throughout the business, and getting a sense of how a large operation ticked, he headed off on an OE which would help galvanise his desire to make a play in fashion. He headed to the UK and found work at a made-to-measure suit business named Burton Tailoring. Outside was London in the Summer of Love, but at Burtons old
world bespoke suits were the only way a man should dress. He only stayed six months, but the experience of working
with fabrics and measurements proved a tremendously instructive education. Particularly so when paired with
the nightlife and extremity of late ’60s London fashion – between those two poles lay a vision of what Barkers would eventually become.
He returned home in ’69, and within a few years had helped usher in the modern era of clothing retail within New Zealand – the first fashion-focused chain which blended a deep understanding of international trends with an appreciation for the unique character of the
New Zealand market. When he concluded his search for better retail space he settled upon 200 Queen Street as the perfect site. At
200-square metres it was an enormous store, but Ray’s gut told him that it was the one.
He gave it a plush, Great Gatsby-esque theme, a wanton luxury keyed from the novel then enjoying a revival. Store environments were an obsession for Ray, who would chew through potential profits on custom theatre lighting and chrome rails while his contemporaries were making do with off-the-rack shelves and display units. He also invested in an enormous sound system, which pointed out onto Queen Street, and always played bang up-to-the-minute music, or even pre-release albums, as record company reps would drop in with free LPs every week.
But with this expensive, luxurious environment came brutal rents, and even with Friday nights a mad scrum it chafed at Ray that weekends remained off limits due to local bylaws. But rather than just shrug and let it ride he did something rather radical about it.
“In Durham Lane there was a shop called Record Warehouse,” he says. “It was owned by a guy named Michael Dow. Michael and I got on well, and we were chatting one day about how we’d love to open on a Saturday morning. So we decided to do it, and to take out
an advertisement letting people know we were going to. Even though it was against the law.”
“So the Labour Department would come in just about every Saturday and fine us a couple of hundred dollars for opening. But he and I persevered, and I guess we were the pioneers, because we got more and more support from other retailers.”
Within six months, and despite the opposition of heavyweights like Smith & Caughey, half the CBD had joined their movement, and Ray and Michael’s little protest forced a law change allowing Saturday trading.
It was only the most dramatic of a number of moves Barkers was to make over the coming years. A core team came together, including Jeff Parsonson, Jeff’s brother Richard and a store manager named Lester Van Der Veer. This group, along with a tightknit set of retail staff – few of whom ever left, such was the loyalty Ray engendered – ran the company until the late ’90s, and for most of that period the company was one of the most admired in New Zealand retail.
They largely had the market for fashion-focused menswear to themselves through the ’80s, and flush with the cashflow this afforded them they expanded down country, first to Christchurch, then Wellington, then eventually Sydney, where an unscrupulous landlord bilked them out of their chosen site and into a less favourable one, meaning their entry to a notoriously competitive market
was stymied.
On the ground in New Zealand, though, they went from strength to strength, with lookbooks from the ’80s showing vibrant colours, slim fits and small collars which would fly out of stores today, before moving into the louder, baggier ’90s. This coincided with Van Der Veer’s appointment as head of design, ushering in an era of real extremes, but one which clicked with the New Zealand public in a huge way.
Barkers was early and heavily invested in baggy clothing, and sweats in particular. Advertising from that era invariably shows two guys and a girl somewhere sunny, having a fantastic time, drowning in vast hoodies, or boxy mustard suits, or Aztec-inspired shirts. The Barkers and BMC branding became a lot more prominent too, and while they stayed New Zealand made they stopped
stocking other brands and switched to entirely Barkers branded merchandise, which couldn’t be found anywhere
else. This look culminated in the company’s biggest, brashest hit, and the one for which it would forever become known: the trackpants.
Van Der Veer had recently taken over from Ray’s overseas trips when he returned with this strange, but somehow compelling proposition.
“He came back with the idea for a hooded sweat and a matching trackpant,” says Ray. “That’s how it started.
“We loved them. We thought it was a great casual outfit. This was around 1990, and we did a shoot on Waiheke, after doing several in Australia. The one on Waiheke was based around the hooded sweat, the trackpants, some great bold-coloured tees and stripes – it was a fantastic range that summer.”
The trackpants exploded to become one of the biggest fashion crazes the country had ever seen. Barkers sold 50,000 pairs over the next few years, and mufti days were awash with oversized, pigment-dyed cotton, all of it manufactured by Streetwise in West Auckland. As striking as the garment was the way it was marketed.
The trend was started by seeding the product not to celebrities, as is commonplace now, but to their high school equivalents. First XVs and rowing eights received Barkers trackpants and sweats custom embroidered with their school and team, and where the sporting elite went, the masses soon followed. Outside of school the company started the first VIP club in clothing retail, issuing members
with a card and emailing out invitations to VIP-only days in startlingly unconventional forms, including a mock jury summons and, memorably, thousands of slices of burnt toast.
They were halcyon days for Barkers, where everyone involved felt locked in and in rhythm. But behind the scenes, things were becoming more difficult. Competition, which had mostly been non-existent through the first 20 years, arrived in the form of surf and streetwear brands like Billabong, Stüssy and Huffer. Australian chains like Country Road came in with Chinese-made clothes which could be discounted more steeply than Barkers ever could, and the New Zealand manufacturing scene started to dry up as the
lifting of tariffs upped the flow of cheap imports. The rise of Dressmart’s discounted outlet stores, which Barkers reluctantly joined, also put pressure on prices, and eventually Ray, who had prided himself on his commitment to New Zealand made clothing, started to have to move his manufacturing off shore.
It all culminated in what Ray calls frankly “the biggest regret of [his] life”. After a heart scare he sold the business to Jeff Parsonson and Brendan Lindsay, before it went through a succession of management and ownership changes before its recent revival under former Max and Hallensteins general manager Jamie Whiting – an apparel industry lifer who is a huge admirer of Barkers and is determined to return it to the iconic status it enjoyed in the first three decades.
After a decade away Ray has re-engaged with the business which still bears his family name, and has spent time with key members of staff in a new role as brand ambassador. Now in his sixties and semi-retired, his position as a pioneer of men’s fashion in New Zealand
can, at times, be passed over when the histories of New Zealand fashion are written in favour of ankle-biters who came along decades later. But to spend time with him is to be made amply aware that beneath his calm demeanour lies an intellect and instinct with few parallels in the industry – it was what made a shaped Barkers into an iconic brand which practically invented men’s fashion in this country.

To win a Barkers' 40th gift pack – consisting of a pair of Barkers 40th Anniversary beers (brewed by Epic), a Lawrence Arabia 7" vinyl single, a pair of trackies, a copy of 1972 magazine and a $500 voucher – simply email your birthday wishes to info@bmc.co.nz. We'll select a winner by Friday 20 April 2012.

Director Alexander Norton came along for the ride when Isaac Hindin-Miller, Tom Bull, Greg Lewis and Barkers' own Paul Biddle and Jamie Whiting took to the streets of New York to shoot our 2012 Autumn/Winter campaign. This is the result, featuring a fantastic soundtrack by Lawrence Arabia (watch this space for more on that relationship).

 

In the late '70s and early '80s the West Indian cricket side featured one of the greatest collections of talent ever assembled. Viv Richards, Colin Croft, Joel Garner, Clive Lloyd and Michael Holding played cricket with a savagery and flair that was entirely without precedent, and spent 15 years rolling through the great cricketing powers of the day - most pointedly England and Australia - laying waste to all who stood before them. They had no compunction about hurting feelings with the bat, and breaking jaws with the ball.

Fire in Babylon tells that story, setting against the compelling social, cultural and political backdrop of the time, with black consciousness rising up, and reggae heading out into the world - it was watershed era for the Caribbean islands, and is brilliantly told here, with a mix of footage from the era and present day interviews. Any sport or cricket fan will find much to delight in here, but the story is so compelling that anyone who enjoys a classic underdog tale will enjoy the tension and narrative.

We have ten DVD copies to give away, courtesy of Madman Entertainment. To enter simply email info@bmc.co.nz with 'fire' in the subject line, and your address in the body of the email. One entry per person/address, and the competition closes at midday on Wednesday, March7th.



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When I was seven years old my father (Barkers major shareholder Chris Greive) took me to watch what was then, and remains today one of the great live sporting events in the world. The 24 Heures Du Mans is a race like no other - teams of two race cars for 24 hours around the Circuit de la Sarthe, a mix of public roads and part of a track, and regularly cover over 5000km during the mad, impossible fast day's action. 

To watch these magnificent cars scream down the Mulsanne Straight in the early hours of the morning is one of the most awe-inspiring and blood-curdling experiences on earth - back then, prior to 1990's addition of chicanes, it was over five kilometres long, and produced speeds in excess of 400kmh.

New Zealand has a proud history at the race, and in 1966 we supplied three of the four drivers in the two winning cars - a famously close and controversial finish in which Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon's car beat out Denny Hulme's by a mere eight metres after Hulme slowed to allow both vehicles to be in the frame for the finish. During the era when distance determined the winner, rather than number of laps this meant that McLaren and Amon's car won due to having started further back on the grid.

During the '80s the race was dominated by one car - the Porsche 962, which is on display at Continental Cars this weekend. Here's some more information via Continental's Porsche Division Manager Tony Elsmore:

"The race car that dominated International endurance racing during the 80's & 90's - winning the Le Mans 24-hour race seven times between 1982 and 1994. Driven by Derek Bell, Hans Stuck and Al Holbert, this 962C won Le Mans 1987 - one of the 16 major victories by the Porsche 962 Sports cars.

This car was also the last race car driven by New Zealand's 'Jason Richards'. Invited to drive the car last year by Klaus Bischof, from the Porsche 'Rolling Museum' at Sydney's Eastern Creek Raceway during the 'Muscle Car Masters Event' in 2011. In the recent New Zealand 'Porsche Parade' in Taupo, Klaus out of respect for Richards had his name put on the door of the car.

This is one of those very rare cars you don't want to miss out on seeing, she's only in the country for a few more days, so call into our showroom this weekend and take a look at one of Porsche's sexiest race cars."

Any motorsport fan would be well advised to head into Continental this weekend and take a look at this pehnomenal machine.

- Duncan Greive

This Thursday sees New Zealand's inaugural Shop One Night online shopping event, brought to you by the good people at Shop What's New. It runs from 5pm until midnight, and sees designers and clothing labels collaborating with media, bloggers and their fans, along with putting never-to-be-repeated offers and opportunities in front of savvy online shoppers.

Murray Crane's little brother label (stocked exclusively by Barkers) is collaborating with Andy Pickering's superb magazine Pilot for the event. For one night only we're offering pre-sales for the A/W 2012 collection ahead of its release, and the first 50 orders will receive the latest issue of Pilot (pictured above) when they ship in mid-March.

There's also a 10% discount as an added incentive, but the main reward is getting the brilliant little brother collection in your hands before anyone else - pre-orders will ship before stock hits stores.

Here's a sneak preview of some key garments - view and buy the rest at littlebrother.co.nz from 5pm on Thursday Feb 23.

Just in time for Valentine's Day Barkers is bringing you the perfect date movie. This Means War opens nationwide on February 14 and is a revival of the best genre the '80s ever made - the action comedy. Chris Pine and Tom Hardy star as two CIA Agents who discover they're dating the same girl - Reese Witherspoon - and resolve to let the best man win, by any means necessary.

We were treated to a preview of 20 minutes from the film a few weeks ago, and it was fantastic - sharply scripted and enjoyably absurd, while bringing legitimate mega-budget action to the battle.

Barkers is presenting the premiere on February 12, and we have 15 double passes for you and a date to the ultra-premium La Premiere seats to give away to our VIPs. If you're outside of Auckland don't despair - ZM are hosting screenings in all the main centres on Monday February 13, and we've snagged some passes to those too.

All you need to do to win is email info@bmc.co.nz with This Means War in the subject line, along with the city you're after (we've got passes for screenings in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin). There's over 100 passes to be won, so you've got a great chance of making it to the screenings. But get in quick - the competition closes at midday on Thursday February 9th - so get your entry in now.

Check out the trailer below, and if you don't win make sure to check it out - it's got the wise-cracking humour and relentless pace of the likes of Lethal Weapon and other classics of the genre - the perfect mix of rom-com laughs and action thrills.

Joining Barkers two years ago as Head of Merchandise, Paul Biddle was determined to focus on formalwear. His reasoning was simple: a suit is often the most expensive item of clothing a man ever purchases, worn to the most important occasions in their life and for many, every day to work.

With that in mind, he set himself a lofty goal: to make Barkers suits the best off-the-rack range on the market. Launching the latest collection this week, Biddle is confident he has achieved that goal.

“What you want is for a guy to put a suit on in a shop and instantly feel good, and we think we’ve achieved that,” he says. “In a difficult economic climate, a well cut suit can make a big difference in how you’re perceived in the job market – we saw a real opportunity to make a premium suit at an accessible price point.”

Barkers is the Official Formalwear of the All Blacks, the Warriors and a host of other key franchises, which Biddle sees as the chance to showcase the strength and variety of this new range. Given the variety of body shapes represented across the oval ball sports, getting the right fit was incredibly important. Once that new suit ‘block’ (the basic shape of a suit) was in place, it freed the Barkers merchandise team up to focus on the detail.

The three keys to a suit are material, construction and cut, says Biddle – if any one falls away, the suit won’t do its job, and will end up weighing its owner down, rather than elevating them.

“The fabric quality is number one. We’re offering a premium cloth at an accessible price point,” saus Biddle. “Super 120s Merino is a very fine cloth, one much more commonly found at the bespoke end of the suit market.” Biddle is also extremely proud of the construction.

“It’s no good having a nice cloth if you don’t get the construction right. A lot of what makes a suit really work is hidden underneath the fabric. Our suits have full canvas fronts, which allow the jacket to conform to your body over time, and give the jacket a superb shape and roll.”

The new Barkers suits have just arrived in stores in eight fabrics and two fits - a slim and a classic. They retail for $649, but for a limited time can be purchased for $599 including a complimentary shirt and silk tie.

One of the many side effects of working at a clothing company is that you're constantly surrounding by fabric. Swatches, fit samples, production samples - they get worn, wear-tested, get holes cut in them, and much of it gets thrown away when we're done with it.

Fiona Kao, a designer from our production team, got to a point when she couldn't stand seeing all that cotton and wool going to waste any longer. So she started collecting suitable portions and making them into one-off, handmade infant clothes. It's early days for the project, but her first effort was the shirt above, itself constructed from of our shirts.

She sources the patterns from one of our suppliers, and assembles them in her spare time, and the use of men's fabric's lends the garments a more timeless quality than much of the very of-the-moment children's wear you see in stores.

This morning she brought in her latest creations - two pairs of moccasins, made up of various swatches of denim, gingham patterns and more. We hope you'll agree that they're a far better fate than the yarn might otherwise have met.

Last Paradise is a documentary covering the rise of New Zealand's adventure sports culture over the past half century, and the way its unique sensibilities and culture spread around the world.

Featuring an unprecedented array of footage of the early days of big wave surfing, bungee jumping and a host of other hybrid approaches, the documentary functions as both a recollection of the innocence and ingenuity which lead to these industries rising, and a provocative remembrance of the world as it was before being ravaged by certain industries.

Thanks to the good people at Madman Entertainment we have ten copies of the DVD to give away - to enter simply email info@barkersonline.co.nz with 'Last Paradise' in the subject line, and your address in the body of the email. We'll draw winners on January 19.

It started, as good things sometimes can, over drinks in New York City. Barkers MD Jamie Whiting and Merchandise Manager Paul Biddle had flown in a couple of nights earlier to seek inspiration, shop and soak in the atmosphere prior to assembling Barkers winter 2012 collection. They met up with Isaac Hindin Miller to hear about his adventures since moving North, and discuss his feature for 1972 magazine, How to Wear... which was widely judged to be a high point of the second issue.

The night wore on and the conversation roamed, and Isaac related his own backstory, of his beginnings in the fashion industry, working for Murray Crane at various little brother outlets and the powerful imprint that time had left on him even now, more than a half decade removed. 

Over the following days the hangover faded, but the memory of the conversation stayed sharp, and upon their return Paul and Jamie mentioned it to Murray during negotiations for a new little brother contract (signed in the past few weeks). He'd been watching Isaac's rise in New York with some interest, his new gigs with media elites (The New York Times, GQ) and fashion icons (Hugo Boss), and had been thinking along similar lines to us: that we should sound the man out on taking a role with little brother.

Over a whirlwind week of back-and-forths, that's exactly what happened. You can read Isaac's deeply personal and very affecting account here, but here's the key fact:

"Yesterday, on my second to last day in New Zealand, I was appointed Creative Director of Little Brother. It's a job I've wanted for about 12 years – back when I used to live in Christchurch, I'd come to Auckland for holidays and hang around the original Ponsonby Road Little Brother store until there wasn't a piece I hadn't tried on. Then I'd go back the next day in case anything new had come in. I'm a long term fan and I'm incredibly excited to be re-joining the company after a six year hiatus."

We are too. So congratulations to Isaac from all at Barkers - it's a daunting task, building a range for a brand as well-loved as little brother (all the more so given the man who'll be looking over his shoulder), but if anyone deserves this shot it's Isaac. The first range will be in stores this August for Summer 12/13 - but we're certain that he'll chronicle his progress, the agonies and breakthroughs at isaaclikes.com - it should be an exhilarating ride.

We'll periodically post images from our head office to give you a window into the colours, fabrics and feel which are around us every day. You'll also get a peek into what's coming a whole season ahead of time, as our production team are currently spending their days tweaking jackets and knitwear even as the days start to heat up.

Here's a selection of shots from product that's coming some time between next week and next winter.


New season checks - not short of summer colour.


New season tees, heavy on fine stripes and looser (but not at all scooped) necks.


Three of the chino colours for next winter - due this March.


A small sampling of next year's knitwear, in vibrant new colours.


Our business shirt selection. We smugly believe them to be the best on the market - but are happy to be proven wrong if you can find one better?


Some new season shirts, due in store shortly.






Three new examples of the "Mayfair" suit - ultra slim cut in Super 120s merino in light grey, charcoal and sharkstooth navy. The previous winter's version sold out in record time, and these limited runs are expected to perform a similar trick.


Some more of the socks which have proven amongst our biggest sellers through Christmas.


Our design company Switch put together this DIY Christmas decoration. Pretty neat, don't you agree?

On this blog we end up talking so much about what Barkers is up to that sometimes the clothes can get a little lost. This is an attempt to redress that balance. Each month from now on we'll post the five products we love - a sort of curated guide to what's arrived in stores lately, with the occasional nod to garments which are coming soon.

December is a big deal for any retailer, and Barkers is no exception. Aside from making everyone incredibly busy, and our retail staff dead-eyed zombies by the month's end, it's also a time when a phenomenal volume of new product arrives in stores. Which is why picking just five items for this month was so difficult. but here they are - incredible gifts one and all, if you're in that market...

1. Covent Walk Short
Truly, the best shorts anywhere this summer. Slim cut chino shorts which look fantastic cuffed a little, the Covent Walkshort is ultra-hard wearing, and available in five colours, from vibrant plum and bright blue to more subdued tones like stone and ink. Which means you can wear them all summer at pretty much all occasions. Truly essential.



2. Canvas D Belt
This pairs perfectly with the shorts above - they could be brothers, or at least cousins. The same basic ingredients are present: solid construction; bright colours; superb materials and the chance to escape the black, white and grey straitjacket of men's colour palettes here in New Zealand.


3. Matt Stripe Tee
While print tees have their place, they've been feeling a little ubiquitous lately, so the range of stripes we've brought out this summer might be the antidote you've been looking for. This example has darker colours but remains lightweight so as to not weigh you down when the sun's high in the sky, and is set off by sweet details like the pocket and button.


4. Daisy Shirt
A few years ago print shirts were, frankly, out of control. The were riotously colourful, shapeless and seemed involved in a volume arms race - whichever shrieks the loudest wins. The new generation of prints is far more subtle, with '50s inspired detail, slim cuts, lightweight cotton and well-shaped cutaway or button-down collars. The example below works better with a blazer than a barbecue, and if you're feeling check-ed out by check shirts the Daisy is a great place to move on to.


5. Converse Range
This one isn't available online, but is well worth a trip into the select stores which stock them. We've got a specially curated range of Converse and Jack Purcell shoes - including some exclusive styles - in limited runs which are selling out within weeks of landing. The re-imagined boat shoe below is typical of the crafted appeal - head into High St, St Lukes, Sylvia Park, Newmarket, Takapuna, Lambton Quay or the Studio on Manners Mall to check them out.

On this blog we end up talking so much about what Barkers is up to that sometimes the clothes can get a little lost. This is an attempt to redress that balance. Each month from now on we'll post the five products we love - a sort of curated guide to what's arrived in stores lately, with the occasional nod to garments which are coming soon.

1.Labrador Med Stripe Sock / $12.99


Barkers ultra bright socks have been one of our big hits over the past few months, with New Zealand guys leaping at the chance to show a flash of colour in their ensemble. It's impossible to pick a favourite amongst the dozens of designs we've had through, but the Labrador Med Stripe is as good as any, with a black body leavened by splashes of orange, yellow and grey marl.

2. Washington Shot Gingham Shirt / $139.99



Gingham has been having a moment, and Barkers has been right on top of the classic fabric's resurgence. One common conundrum is how to wear it (see this slideshow for some great tips there), but there's no doubt that it represents a superb break from the plains/stripes duopoly of business shirt staples. This example might be a little too adventurous for some workplaces, but will elevate any outfit it's a part of - available in two striking colour combinations in store and online now.

3. Little Brother Seersucker Walkshort / $99.99


Seersucker is an old Colonial fabric, popularised by the British while they sweltered through Indian summers and African Autumns. It remains peerless in the heat, with a light weight and breathability that you'll adore when the heat descends in the coming months. These Little Brother Walkshorts are a superb deployment of the fabric, slim-cut and cuffed, a must-have garment for this summer, wherever you spend it.

4. Timex Original T Series Q Blue Dial / $199.99



Over the past few months you may have noticed a new energy at Barkers. We've had a new management team come in, with fresh ideas and a definite vision about where the brand is heading. Part of that vision has been opening us up, making Barkers more collaborative and open to forging new relationships. In the past year you've seen us work artist Henrietta Harris, heritage footwear maker Jack Purcell, photographer Bruce Jarvis and a number of others along the way. One of the best of these collaborations is with the classic American watchmaker, Timex, on curating a range of mostly exclusive faces, including this beauty, available online and in select Barkers stores.

6. Coming Soon / Native Birds Series Tees / $59.99



Matt Oliver from our production team has long had an interest in New Zealand history, and when we were tossing about ideas for a new range of t-shirts his mind wandered to the striking drawings of J G Keulemans. John Gerard Keulemans was a Dutch bird illustrator who contributed to many key works in the 19th century, including Walter Buller's A History of the Birds of New Zealand. Matt has put together a range highlighting some of the most majestic examples of Keulemans' work, which will be coming to a store near you this December. Keep an eye out for them!

A while back we showed you the fitout of our new Manners Mall store in Wellington, based around the theme of a music studio. Now we’ve rolled out two more executions of the new concept, and thought it high time we share them with you.

To take it back a step - from now on, whenever we open a new store or re-fit an existing one, that store will have its own unique approach, and be named to reflect that identity. The name and concept will come from the culture of the area, and we’ll look for unique objects and images to speak to that idea.

Our store in Te Awa, Hamilton is ‘Barkers Garage’, and draws on both the petrolhead heritage of Hamilton, and the DIY culture endemic to farming communities like the Waikato. As you’ll see in the images below, there’s a mix of vintage photography, powder-coated tools, and even a dismantled push-mower to catch the eye.

The store in Christchurch’s fantastic new container mall on the border of the red zone in Christchurch is ‘Barkers Locker Room’, and was inspired by the fanatical sporting heritage of Canterbury. It's set up with elements from a typical high school gym, with lockers and bleachers to display clothes, plus key memorabilia scattered throughout.

Check out some images of the two locations below, and if you’re in the area do check the stores out when you get the chance - we’re incredibly proud of the concept, and feel like they represent a world class retail environment unlike any other in New Zealand.

Barkers Garage / Te Awa, Hamilton













Barkers Locker Room / Cashel Container Mall, Christchurch

A few weeks back I was lucky enough to attend a media preview screening of Drive, a new Ryan Gosling film that I'd had marked as one to look out for based on Aaron Yap's recommendation in issue two of 1972. Yap's my favourite film writer in the country, and has a tendency to pick winners from a good distance out.

This preview referred to "a violent throwback to existential actioners of the '70s", called Gosling's character a "stunt driver by day, mob getaway driver by night" while tipping "dazzling car chases" and a "brilliant supporting cast".

Where do I sign, right? But the film brought so much more again to the party. For starters, where most modern culture appears so terrified of letting your attention lapse that it tries to fill every moment with jokes, words, action or energy, Drive was content to linger in contended silence for large portions of its running time. While that mightn't sound like the greatest selling point - it's really quiet! - the approach gives all the dialogue and action that much more intensity by contrast.

Similarly, in a post-Tarantino world which glories in rapid-fire delivery and shoves its genre-blending in your face (not that Tarantino's bad, but, like Nirvana, many who've sucked at his teat have, well, sucked), Drive manages to be several films at once, without them seeming to compete or run at cross purposes. Its a strange sensation, but it functions equally well in the various genre roles (car chase/heist/romantic drama/slasher/coming-of-age/organised crime/et al) it tries on, while never really having them overlap. Director Nicolas Winding Refn (The 'Pusher' trilogy, Bronson) just segues seamlessly between each one, with no sense of them clashing, but rather functioning in this natural, weightless harmony.

There's lots more to love: the soundtrack has justifiably drawn raves, with its slow-mo '80s revisions; all the performances are exceptional and in rhythm with the coiled intensity at the film's core; the chase scenes are brutish but feel anchored in reality in a way most recent cinema has entirely eschewed.

Critics have largely fallen over themselves in praising the film, with David Farrier calling it "the best film of 2011", while Refn won the best director prize at Cannes earlier this year. It hasn't been universally acclaimed - this is a typically sniffy dismissal - but we here at Barkers like it well enough that we're doing our best to get it front of you guys.

This means that our top Auckland region VIPs will have recently received an email inviting them to a special pre-release screening we're putting on in conjunction with Pinnacle Films, while all our customers who make a purchase in the next couple of weeks will go in the draw to win one of 50 double in-season passes to the film.

Check out the trailer below, and if you don't win a pass via one of our promotions, make sure you head down to the movies after its November 3rd opening and catch it in the theatres - this is most definitely a film for the true believers, and needs to be witnessed on a big screen to bask in its quiet wonder.

Last week our amazing new PR people at Process held a media viewing for our new season. We met, mingled, schmoozed and all that stuff. It was a good time.

But the best part was the way they'd arranged our new season garments. They'd imported a dazzling display cabinet from Flotsam & Jetsam, along with a bunch of sweet found objects - every last detail was in its place.

Barkers official photographer Stephen Tilley took a few shots, including one of Shihad and The Adults' Jon Toogood in a new season shirt - and it's not even black!

Check some highlights below.

The latest issue of the Barkers magazine 1972 is in stores now. Our top VIPs will receive their copy in the mail in the next couple of days, otherwise it is free with a purchase of $100 or more in stores. We're really proud of the magazine, but rather than re-hash its contents I'll simply post the editorial below - hopefully it'll pique your interests to get your hands on a copy ASAP.

"When we put out the first issue of 1972 we had no idea what to expect. It could easily have been a preposterous failure – a magazine put out by a clothing company?! Stick to your knitwear, guys! Thankfully it was anything but, and that’s largely down to how it was received and embraced by our readers. Barkers MD Jamie Whiting received a steady stream of emails from customers admiring the publication, and as a business we certainly feel like our gut instinct – that our customers would prefer a magazine to lookbooks – has been borne out in spades.

This has allowed us to firm up 1972’s foundations. It is now a permanent fixture which we’ll be releasing four times a year for the foreseeable future. And while the first issue was principally about introducing the concept and a few of the partners with whom the company regularly collaborates, this one is more along the lines of what you can expect going forward.

Which still means a few features on the most interesting corners of our world. Photographer Bruce Jarvis’ incredible ‘70s live shots grace a new range of tees and the cover – he’s interviewed on page 38, while Joe Nunweek brings you the story of Parisian, a maker of incredible ties and belts who are also a very rare example of someone manufacturing right here in New Zealand.

We’re also looking beyond our boundaries though, and will endeavour to bring you great writing on entertaining subjects from across New Zealand and the world. In this issue Gavin Bertram delves into the deadly world of the Mr Asia drug cartel – inadvertently finding a Barkers connection there too, oddly enough (page 32), while I recount the rare pleasure of driving the Tesla Roadster S. It’s one of the fastest production cars in the world, and entirely electric. Read the full story of Tesla’s bold gamble on page 22.

Before we get too wrapped up in the features, it pays to remember what our core business is here. From page 42 onwards you’ll see the sterling work of Paul Biddle and his production team, a spring collection lensed by Stephen Tilley and worn by Jamie Whitehouse which is the equal of any brand from anywhere, we think. As always we’re keen to get your feedback – this is a magazine for our customers so do email duncan@bmc.co.nz if you’ve any thoughts on what you find inside. We hope you like what you see.

Cheers

– Duncan Greive

Editor 1972

Barkers recently signed on with PROCESS PR (always all caps with these guys) to handle our media relations. They're a boutique fashion PR agency which has built a superb array of clients - including Converse, American Crew, Sperry and Deadly Ponies - off the back of their uniquely targeted approach to the area.

When they start representing a new client they send out a mercurial email teasing the new addition, and we liked how ours came out so much we wanted to share it with you. The music is particularly fine - 'Fooling No One' by Auckland guitar romantics Cut Off Your Hands, who played a scorching pair of shows at Galatos the Saturday just past. It's 30 seconds which says a lot about where Barkers is at and where we're heading - check it out now:

About a year ago we had the singular pleasure of hosting Roger Shepherd at the Barkers head office. The founder of iconic New Zealand record label Flying Nun - home to legends like The Clean, Straitjacket Fits and The 3Ds - was settling into his old label head chair again, having bought his company back from Warner music.

It was a very pleasant couple of hours, with Roger doing most of the talking (which might come as little surprise to those who know him), while Jamie, Paul and myself from Barkers listened to a seemingly endless parade of incredible stories. They ranged from the very recent (a return to Dunedin to watch some still brilliant FN bands) to the ancient (recollections of industry personalities long departed).

Somehow we got around to the topic of collaborating, and figured that there was one very logical method to it: we do what we do best (make clothes), they do what they've always done very well (provide striking artwork), and we'd make some t-shirts together.

We decided to drill into the idea of The Extended Play 12" single, (or EP for short), mainly because the format was always both obscure and utterly critical to Flying Nun's success. Many of the label's most adored recordings emerged on that format, and it seemed a fitting way to keep their memory alive. So a range emerged in December, featuring the sleeves of The Clean's 'Great Sounds Great...', The Gordons' 'Future Shock', The 3Ds' 'Swarthy Songs For For Swabs' and The Bats' '4 Songs', all in hand-numbered limited edition runs.

They were an instant hit, selling out in a matter of weeks. So it was inevitable that we would meet again, share some more stories, and plot another range. We had to wait for t-shirt weather to loom again, but here it is, and here the tees are - three more EPs from The Clean (again), Straitjacket Fits and Look Blue Go Purple, plus the new label logo.

They're in stores right now, and already selling fast - be aware that we've kept the quantities very tight, so they will once again sell out. It's the label's 30th anniversary this November - read more on that here - so it's the perfect time to re-acquaint yourself with the label's music and artwork. The logo tee is above and the EPs below - or click here to purchase them online.


Look Blue Go Purple



Straitjacket Fits



The Clean

In the 1850s the Naugatuck River Valley in Connecticut was home to so many clock makers it was known as the "Switzerland of America". 150 years later, only one remains: Timex, a descendent of the Waterbury Clock Company and the Ingersoll Watch Company.

Timex has defined the history of the watch, from its inception as a US military accessory - pocket watches were a hazard in battle - to its collaboration with Disney on a Mickey Mouse watch, which became the first million-seller in wristwatch history. 

In the early sixties the company was so dominant that one in every three watches sold was a Timex. Since then others have flooded into the watch market, but the original remains the benchmark for quality and style. That's why Barkers is so excited to be stocking a range of their watches, arriving in stores today and priced between $149.99-$249.99.

We've taken on a exclusive collection of reissued watches from throughout the company's history, from classic '40s faces, to new wave digital styles like that above.

Timex's slogan through the sixties was it takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin', and while it might sound a little dated now, it still expresses a truth which persists: Timex watches are built for the long-haul. Head in to selected Barkers stores* to check out the range today - we'll post a blog with the complete range in the next few days.

- Duncan

* Timex will be available online soon, and can be seen in store at: Albany / St Lukes / High St / Newmarket / Sylvia Park / Manners Mall / Lambton Quay / Riccarton / Dunedin

For those who have never heard the term before, a “Look Book” is a combination of style guide and catalogue that most fashion brands produce at the start of each season.  At Barkers we are all familiar with the expensive and time consuming process of putting one together, only to have it languish un-loved and un-thumbed in our stores.  We thought; why not just make a magazine, something for people to read, something interesting and relevant?

So, here we present the inaugural edition of 1972 named for the year our company was born, with Graham Henry as our cover star.  We’ve put together a great line-up of some of New Zealand’s best journalists and columnists to interview some of the people Barkers collaborate with, as well as write features and columns about subjects we feel that you, our customers, will find entertaining and enlightening.

So grab yourselves a copy from our stores - or place an order online and we'll throw one in - while stocks last!