In news that will go straight to the heart of anyone who spent 2008 sitting on milk crates, drinking vodka cranberries in long-line singlets, skinny jeans and fedoras, ie elder millennials, Sass & Bide will close its stores and e-commerce site for the next several months. The Myer-owned label announced the move on Thursday, writing on social media it’s “never too late to reinvent yourself”. The plan is to relaunch later this year with a strategy aimed at capturing new markets.
Beloved in Australia and abroad, Sass & Bide was founded by Sarah-Jane Clarke and Heidi Middleton in 1999. Selling distressed denim, embellished jackets and singlet-dresses cut to flash side-boob, the Brisbane-born duo experienced a meteoric rise. They garnered global acclaim and a slew of celebrity clients – Beyoncé, Rihanna, Paris Hilton and Madonna to name a few – before Myer acquired the business in two transactions in 2011 and 2013 for approximately $70m. Both designers exited the business in 2014. Middleton went on to found a new label Artclub, while Clarke launched a line of jewellery.
