Maggie Marilyn designer and founder Maggie Hewitt tells Simon Pound about her mission to create a climate-friendly and accessible clothing brand.

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A few years ago, something quite remarkable happened in New Zealand fashion. A new brand came out of Aotearoa and debuted straight onto Net-a-Porter, one of the most desirable doors in the world, with its debut collection. 

This was pretty amazing. They had never taken a debut collection, let alone one from New Zealand. But it was no fluke – the Maggie Marilyn collection sold amazingly and became an “It Woman” uniform around the world. Designer and founder Maggie Hewitt was shortlisted for one of fashion’s biggest prizes, sponsored by LVMH, and has built on that success with years of growth as a business and brand. 

Maggie Marilyn has become a pioneer in sustainable luxury, being made in New Zealand and pioneering better production practices. Recently the brand has started moves to become carbon positive, and released lines that are more affordable and that run to larger sizes, two accessibility issues the industry struggles with.

To talk about the journey, making it work internationally from New Zealand and what’s next, Maggie Marilyn founder and designer Maggie Hewitt joined Business is Boring via Zoom.