IT'S OUR 29TH BIRTHDAY!
Well it has been a long and winding road and today we celebrate 29 years of designing swimsuits that fit women of all shapes and sizes. We're busy planning 2011 with thoughts of a retro collection and revamping some of our classic styles in new colours and patterns. But before we go to far into the future we thought it was time to look back.
How did we get to be here?
The impetus to start the whole thing off came when Sue, dissatisfied with what was on the market, made herself a crocheted red bikini and wore it down to Brighton beach in Melbourne. Beach goers were enamoured with her design asking where they could get themselves such a piece.
Sue started designing swimsuits for her friends and eventually enrolled in a textiles course. When she got sick of trying to think of different names for carpet colours, she re-enrolled in a pattern making course. When she was done she conceived her own swimwear label Sue Rice, which she created and sold from her friend's garage.
As more people became interested in her degigns, Sue decided to move to Sydney and make a life for herself as a swimwear designer. Things steamrolled and before long she had opened shops up and down the east coast and was stocked all over the country.
In the midst of it all she expanded her business to include made-to-measure swimwear, a practice she is well remembered for. We still have many customers coming in asking for the service (which we ceased 15 years ago).
When family life and life more generally needed to take a bigger priority in Sue's life she downsized. Thanks to the advent of the blessed internet, women all over the world can still buy Sue Rice designs and those who live close by can still visit our design studio come retail store in Glebe, Sydney for personal fittings and to meet Sue herself who still works there as sole designer.
Sue, in that first red bikini, windsurfing where it all began: Brighton Beach, Melbourne.
Love SR
