Sharing a love for fashion, this M’sian & her retired mum launched a modest clothing brand

At Vulcan Post, we’ve recently been covering quite a few businesses run by parent-child duos. They include bag brand PopoMama Made, wooden decor brand Jai.Woodworks, bucket hat brand TopiTin, and ceramics brand Silo, to name a few.

We recently came across another such brand, called Ayunae.co, which makes modest fashion. Their clothing infuses Japanese design silhouettes with traditional Malaysian designs.

Behind it is a mother-daughter duo, and we spoke to them to learn more about how the brand came about.

A resignation and a retirement

The idea was born when the daughter, Izzati, resigned from her job last year.

Coincidentally, it was around the same time that her mother, Sidah, had retired.

“I’ve always had the idea to start my own clothing line but my mother was sceptical about it until I had my fair share of experience working with a local clothing brand,” said Izzati.

She shared that since her mother has always helped her by giving sound advice and ideas during her university years, Izzati thought that she would make the perfect business partner.

“Without fail, she has always been there for me. Even from then, we knew we were a good team. With family encouragement, we decided to launch Ayunae.co together.”

In regards to their experience in fashion, Izzati said that she and her mother were always watching fashion show programmes since her childhood.

From that, she figured out that she has always wanted to do something related to fashion when she got older. 

“Fashion has always been my mum’s interest. Be it window shopping, reading, watching programmes, and even styling me. My interest developed during my university days. So it’s natural that we put our minds together to work on fashion designs,” she explained.

Differing from current trends

On the inception of the brand and how they came up with the name, Izzati said, “I am a Javanese-Bugis descendant and the word Ayunae derives from ‘Ayune’ in Javanese and Bugis which translates to cantiknya in Bahasa Melayu.”

Izzati said that their design ideas come from their interest in Japanese design silhouettes, which are known to be loose-fitting and flowy.

“So we would like to infuse it with our traditional Malaysian design without neglecting comfort and versatility. We prefer to differ from the current trend.”

Since launching, their best seller is the first dress they launched, which is called the Cleo dress, and their first Raya launch which included their kimono kurung Kedah collection. 

For this year’s Raya, they have launched their Anna Kurung collection which is a modern twist on Kedah’s baju kurung.

The Anna Kurung collection is priced at RM209 and comes in a choice of seven different colour variations such as: Black+Grey, Salmon+Dusty Pink, Lime+Blue, Salmon+Blue, and more. It also comes in two sizes, S/M and L/XXL.

Every purchase has free postage to every state in Malaysia including Sabah and Sarawak and includes a sampul (money packet) Raya.

“Currently we are focusing on our Raya Collection. We want to showcase through our designs that Raya clothing isn’t something to be only worn on Raya but could also be worn on casual days,” shared Izzati.

On the production of the pieces, Izzati said that as it is only the two of them that do the designs, choice of fabrics, and marketing, they are not involved in the tailoring themselves.

Ayunae.co also only makes 150 pieces of each design to ensure that they are not mass-produced and so that consumers don’t end up seeing people wearing the same exact look at every corner.

“Over the years I personally prefer to wear or style something different from everybody else to break the monotony. In fact, making pieces in small batches is aligned with our vision of creating versatile and comfy pieces to avoid fast fashion.”

A combo to last

On her plans for the future, Izzati shared that she is currently juggling being a freelance content creator and handling Ayunae.co. However, she would love to focus on developing both as a full-time career.

Their pieces are available for order via WhatsApp and at pop-up stores from time to time. But in the long term, the duo hope to have their very own studio and showroom cum photography/content studio. 

Izzati shared that their intention is to only have a slice of the pie of the current market, and hopes that the story behind the brand also sets them apart.

“It’s not easy to work with a 60-year-old, and of course, it’s also not easy (for my mother) to work with a 27-year-old, but we make it work. We compromise and manage to blend the ideas and designs of two generations into one acceptable style.”

Featured Image Credit: Ayunae.co