Meet Lucy Given from LUC DESIGN in Hobart, Tasmania. Lucy shares with us what inspires her; how her mantra “Buy Once, Buy Well” guides her business success, and how she will be celebrating her upcoming milestone birthday.
Infused with a profound appreciation for quality design and aesthetics across fashion, art, homeware, and furniture, Lucy has earned her luxury store prestigious awards including but not limited to Winner Retailer of the Year (Gift Guide Australia, 2017, 2018), Winner of Walter M Pegler Award for Visual Merchandising Excellence, Global Innovation Awards Chicago 2017 and Telstra Small Business Winner, Tasmanian for Telstra Women in Business Awards 2019.
Tell us about LUC DESIGN. What inspired you to begin?
I have traveled and lived in many different cities and always enjoyed discovering new places, especially stores.
I am obsessed with retail stores, especially small, privately-owned concept stores, and adore that heightened sense of excitement when you walk into a store for the first time. What are they going to offer? What new brands am I going to discover? How are they presenting their stock? I wanted to recreate that feeling in my hometown.
Having returned to Tasmania just after the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) opened, I felt it was time to bring great design to Hobart. Locals and visitors alike were ready for Tasmania to be a leader in great food, wine, art, and design. Good retail was the next unconquered territory.
What do you enjoy most about having your store?
The opportunity to be surrounded by beautiful things. I never tire of seeing new designs, nor do I tire of being inspired by beautiful objects. I genuinely enjoy being able to present my view and have it so well received.
I am particularly drawn to good and iconic design, and that sense of quiet luxury, and it is such a privilege to be able to curate these luxury items.
I love that people expect a lot from LUC design, quality products, a calm and sophisticated aesthetic, service that goes above and beyond, attention to detail, and consistency and reliability of stock. It challenges me and keeps me moving forward.
KASMIRI shares your ethos of “Buy Once, Buy Well”. Tell us more about this pursuit and how this is reflected in your curation.
I have built the identity of my brand on the premise of ‘buy once, buy well’. I want people to embrace quality over quantity. It is not necessarily true that a product has to cost more to be better, it is a matter of buying something you know you will want in your life for a long time and not just a season. I encourage people to buy things that resonate with them and recognise that the item will have importance in their homes or their wardrobes.
I realised I wanted to be recognised for educating or inspiring customers to be more aware of what they were purchasing. ‘Buy Once, Buy Well’ was the mantra I adopted. I want customers to make more considered choices when shopping, buy something they love, buy something that resonates with them. It doesn’t have to have a big price tag, and it doesn’t have to have a brand name, but it should “mean something”. I wanted to inspire customers to have great designs in their life every day.
Once I started to adopt that thinking my buying decisions changed. I was buying fewer ‘on-trend’, ‘of the moment’ pieces. I changed the way I merchandised the product by mixing brands together, making it more like how I would present things in my own home. Making sure customers know the story behind a brand or a product. I enable customers to open things, smell things, try different things, and make their vignettes in-store. This approach increased our sales.
I was lucky to have Wanda Jelmini, Creative Director of Missoni Home speak in my store. She understood, and agreed, with the approach of ‘Buy Once, Buy Well’. Their family business has been producing quality textiles since the 1950s and she still proudly wears clothing pieces from the 60s. Not only that but these vintage pieces are coveted. The quality has not diminished nor has the classic, recognisable styling. She was disillusioned with the ‘throw-away’ mentality that was now emerging, especially within the clothing industry. In her beautiful Italian lilt she said:
This resonated with me greatly.
I genuinely don’t believe in following trends. I believe that true style is timeless, that good design has no ‘era’, and if you follow the ethos of ‘Buy Once, Buy Well’ then you will never need to constantly update your look or house.
William Morris famously said:
What do you love most about KASMIRI as a brand?
KASMIRI presents cashmere in the considered and elevated way cashmere should be celebrated. That unspoken sense of luxury. The feel, the texture, the weight, and the ‘soft hand’ of cashmere is instantly recognisable and respected.
The sophisticated colour palette is so on-brand with our store and I love the brand’s unwavering pursuit of quality.
What travel essential items do you never leave without and why?
I am one of those people who has mentally packed a month before departure!
I am extremely considered in my packing and have proudly, if not insanely traveled with only carry-on baggage on more than one European vacation.
My outfits are carefully managed and thought through, and my on-board essentials are meticulously curated. Every outfit must multi-task and be interchangeable. With that in mind, there are a few items I don’t compromise on. I have a quality, compact, crossbody leather bag that always travels with me. This allows for my wallet, phone, charging cord, and passport to be close to me at all times.
I always carry a cashmere travel wrap no matter what the season. It keeps me warm on the plane, elevates any travel outfit, and finishes an outfit in the evening without the need to pack a jacket or coat. I will have my KASMIRI cashmere travel wrap with me on my next trip.
I always pack one pair of velvet slides or slippers for this is my only footwear choice for evenings.
What has been the greatest adventure in your life so far?
I am confident that my greatest adventure may still be ahead of me.
I don’t feel the need for adventure in my life. I love simple pleasures and am happiest when just sharing a meal with friends or family, or walking on the beach with my dog.
When traveling I seek new restaurants, new retail, and the comfort of galleries and museums. Less adventure, more inspiration.
I have been very privileged to have had such an interesting life so far and I am extremely grateful I have had the opportunity to see much of the world.
You’re certainly a seasoned traveler. Where in the world will you travel to next?
I am very much looking forward to celebrating my 60th birthday in London this year.
I thought very hard about where I wanted to celebrate this milestone and what ‘vibe’ I wanted to embrace but when I drilled down on what I wanted to do, it was to feel relaxed, in a familiar and comfortable city where I could visit my favourite haunts, eat well, reunite with friends and be inspired.
My nephew is currently starring in ‘Guys and Dolls’ in London and so I am excited to see his performance, and then he and I plan on having a mini vacation together in Sardinia. That will be adventure enough for me.
I am more of a ‘glass of wine in a piazza or museum’ kinda gal than a ‘swimsuit and tan on a beach’ kinda gal!
LUC Design has a collection of KASMIRI Cashmere Travel Wraps in-store in a selection of coveted colours for their discerning clientele.
