Kate works with us at the Brunswick cafe, but she also has a killer side hustle - Palytte, an ethically conscious fashion label. Here's a little about Kate's label and how it started.

In the midst of the pandemic, while living on the Gold Coast, Kate decided it was time to pursue her dream of starting a fashion label. She applied for the NEIS (now called Self Employment Assistance) program, a government funded short business course. She’d been making patterns and textile designing for other Gold Coast labels at the time, but she was tired of the mundane “white linen” brands that dominated the fashion market in Queensland and the Northern Rivers. She wanted to create something timeless, with lots of colour and patterns, that didn’t follow the current trends. So after graduating from the NEIS course with a business plan in hand, she started designing her own patterns and sewing up pieces in her garage with the help of her mum. For three months she worked on a small collection of unique, inspired designs that offered an alternative to the generic coastal fashion market. Once they were ready, she arranged a fashion shoot with a well known model, and after sharing the photoshoot the designs sold out sooner than expected. Kate decided she couldn’t continue to sew from her garage in the sweltering summer heat, so she found a company in China to sew for her, and says the quality of the garments has increased immensely since making this decision. Every collection is made with the values of slow fashion in mind, using sustainable fabrics and ensuring minimal garments are produced to avoid wastage. Kate relocated to Melbourne three months ago in the middle of winter, which has inspired her to add some winter designs like hoodies and tracksuits in the near future to her collection! Her designs are stunning; a visible homage to retro coastal culture and the colours of the Copenhagen fashion scene, and you can check them out on her website here!