Kelly Anthony is owner of the up and coming Vintage clothing company Warrior. Kelly also works as a stylist for personal clients, designers and artists. Her extensive vintage collection is also rented out for films and photo-shoots.
When did you decide to get into fashion?
I have been designing, making and customising clothes for as long as I can remember, probably from around the age of 7 or 8 years old.
I remember going to a party about 20 years ago in a Vintage floor length black dress and biker boots, and making a fur waistcoat to go with it that I was still sewing in the car on the way there. I have always loved charity shops, markets and boot sales, and can spot a Vintage Oscar De La Renta Dress a mile off.
How did you get your start?
I had my own market stall from the age of 16 onwards, selling women’s clothes locally at first, but in Covent Garden and Wembley as time went on. I knew I wanted to work in Fashion in some way, but didn’t come from the type of family that had ever been to University so didn’t really know what options were open to me.
I began working as an Assistant Buyer for a home ware’s company and then applied to a mail order company to work as a Fashion Buyer. This was a fantastic decision as the experience I gained there over four years really stood me in good stead to continue in the Industry.
I worked with Betty Jackson, Whistles and Topshop, under Sir Phillip Green, you really couldn’t ask for a better start. I was in charge of forecasting trends and selecting items for the catalogue and styling the photo-shoots. I learnt so much along the way.
I’m organised and work really well under pressure, which is a very good thing in this industry.
What did you go on to do next?
Once I left the mail order company, I worked in a few different areas of fashion including Merchandising, Manufacturing, Sales, as a Freelance Stylist, and a Personal Shopper. I love putting together a look for people, whether it’s a new smart work wardrobe for a man that works in the city, or dressing 20 young models for a Video Shoot.
In 2006, I sold my business and house and decided to take a year out to travel.
Where did the initial idea for WARRIOR come from?
When I came back to the UK it suited me to work part time for a while as I had just had my son, and was doing a BTEC in Fashion Design at college. I had a very busy eBay store and Vintage clothing had always been a passion of mine, so I bought a stall at Portobello Road Market.
As WARRIOR developed I became more interested in how recycling and reworking vintage was also good for the environment. We restore, repair and re-use everything we can. I also love the way that you can wear something 40 years old but it can still be straight off the catwalk and edgy.
WARRIOR has a specific look that is a world away from the usual Retro/Vintage websites, it’s more Vogue meet Topshop.
More recently I got involved in Oxjam in Brixton, showing my Vintage on the catwalk and selling some pieces, and from there on things have snowballed. I now spend about 20 hours a week sourcing the best Vintage from all over the world.
What are Warrior’s plans for 2011?
I no longer work in Portobello Market, and I was so pleased when Niji Magazine asked WARRIOR to take over their online store.
Warrior Vintage @ Niji Magazine will launch the early part of this year, and I have also just taken over as their Fashion Editor. So I will be holding more Fashion shows with Niji this year, I still work as a Stylist for personal clients, designers & artists. I also rent out Vintage wardrobe for films and photo-shoots.
It looks like 2011 is going to be my busiest yet, and I can’t wait!
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