Behind The Brand: Goldie + Ace Co-Founders Chris Kontos And Alana Tiller

Alana Tiller and Chris Kontos, co-founders of nostalgic, quirky and quality children’s wear label Goldie + Ace, put their fashion passion to the test when they launched the business two years ago. At the time, Alana had two young babies and thought the business would allow her to chill, but the super success story meant Goldie + Ace has moved full steam ahead! Here, the dynamic fashion gurus explain the story behind the brand…  

What was the inspiration behind launching Goldie + Ace? 

Alana: Ever since I was a little girl, I knew I would have a clothing label. My grandma was a brilliant pattern maker so was a huge inspiration to me growing up. She always told me to not work in the apparel business (but I didn’t listen, did I?!). 

Instead, I started working as an assistant buyer for a department store and worked my butt off to become a buyer. Working as the bedlinen buyer for Harris Scarfe is where I met Chris, who was the marketing manager at the time, and our friendship grew. I then moved to Adairs to become their bedlinen buyer and was there for 7 years before having my first baby. I loved bedlinen, but my true passion was clothing. I felt that children’s wear was an area that had the most potential in the Australian market and you can really have fun with it. 

Chris: After many years of friendship and working with Alana, she came to me with the idea of building a children’s wear brand. I thought, why not?! I have a lot of experience in the fashion industry but not with kids wear, so I was up for the challenge. Alana is the day-to-day and design, and I support with the PR & Marketing side of the business. It’s a great relationship because we are super honest with each other.  

Can you tell us about Goldie + Ace’s quirky designs?

Alana: Goldie and Ace started predominately as a great quality and timeless children’s wear range that was based on a quirky and fun story from the characters we had hand-drawn for the collection. The tones were super neutral, with prints and characters that were quirky but cool. Over time the idea of nostalgia and our childhood began to creep into styles, prints and colours. Right now we are really inspired by the styles we wore growing up in the 80’s and 90’s. Our quality, though, is consistent, hence why we have such a strong and loyal customer base. 

Chris: I love working on our campaign shoots. We take people on a journey back to their childhood with the retro vibe styles but still giving a nod to our brand roots with characters and prints. Our customers love the vibe our kids have in shoots, we pick all the kids who have their own unique personality and attitude. 

How is Goldie + Ace different?

Alana: Both Chris and I work on ensuring that we are taking a product to market that is unique and cool for kids. Quality is always first priority for us as we feel clothing should last the test of time wash after wash, season after season. 

Chris: Goldie & Ace is the type of brand you keep and pass on through the generations. Every item is considered from design through to fabrication. As we said it launders well because of it’s quality and manufacturing. 

We love your business philosophy - sourcing ‘healthy’ chemical-free fabrics. Can you explain?

Alana: We love the idea of organic cotton, however it’s a minefield to source great quality long staple organic cotton. So instead, we work only with Oeko Tex certified manufacturers to ensure no harmful chemicals are used in the production or dyes of our fabrics. It’s extremely important for our little babies’ skin. 

Tell us about your career backgrounds? 

Alana: I have always worked in retail and textile buying but adored fashion from afar. Product development and design has always been a passion of mine, so working in fashion has always been my dream. 

Chris: I have worked my entire career in the fashion industry, from the retail floor, to design and buying. Most of my career has been consumed with the marketing and PR side of business but I love the industry so much. Children’s wear is so new to me but I am loving learning about it.  

Goldie + Ace is well-known for quality, but why else do parents love the brand? 

Chris: Of course it’s about quality for us and our customer, but it goes further than that. Goldie + Ace is about creating clothes for kids to create memories in. Those pictures that you see in 20 years’ time and think, ‘I remember those overalls and that tee! I lived in them all summer.’  

We design clothes that are reminiscent of our childhoods. Those great pieces that we remember living in. That’s what our customer comes to Goldie + Ace for. Clothing that is familiar, that they’ve seen before, created memories in and would love to give their children. 

Alana, what was it like launching Goldie + Ace with a young baby?

Alana: My son, Judson, was 6 months old when I registered the business and started designing the first collection. I found it much easier to design children’s wear when I was in that space, buying it for my own child and for friend’s kids. The business officially launched two years ago when my daughter Lottie was born, and I finished up full time work as a buyer. At first, I thought it would be so much fun and chill. How naïve I was! It’s been full steam ahead since day 1 and far busier than we could have ever imagined. But the future is bright for Goldie + Ace, and we are both so excited by it.  

Website: www.goldieandace.com, Instagram @goldieandace

Want to see the products up close? Come to our next Sydney baby expo or Melbourne baby expo by visiting our Sydney baby expo page here or our Melbourne baby expo page here.