Detail drama with the new Kashieca

Women instinctively know when a familiar friend has undergone personal changes. They can instantly recognize a newly-cut mane, will not hesitate to point out weight loss, and can spot a botox job a mile away. So when Kashieca, the reliable retail store they’ve known for the last 17 years, undertook a complete makeover, its loyal female patrons took notice and wondered why.

They probably thought Kashieca felt it needed to update its look. That was partly true. The boutique was hungry for change, in terms of design direction and market positioning, and it took a new ownership to provide it.

A year ago, Kashieca was purchased by Suyen Corporation, the same retail company mothering Bench and Human. Under new management, a boutique overhaul transpired. Everything – from merchandise design to store interiors to window display – was restructured. The new Kashieca now expresses a more youth-oriented design direction, but still tries to fully embody the requests of the fashionably-feminine woman.

Back in 1988, Kashieca, a brand name derived from the first syllables of the founders’ names – sisters Karen, Shiela, and Camille Santos – was popular among students for its reasonably-priced colorful knit tees. Over the years, Kashieca branched out into other clothing styles and widened its market to include young female professionals, young mothers, and the stylish twentysomething. It soon became known as the haven for classic finds. If you wanted a beige twill A-line skirt, you went to Kashieca. Trying to hunt for the perfect white long-sleeved, button-down office wear mainstay? Kashieca was your best bet.

When Kashieca came under Suyen Corporation, designer Gina Yupangco wanted the classic lines to remain, but had in mind a fresh new look for the brand, an overall expression that defined fun and more texture. Her new designs personify the reinvention of "classic with a twist." You still get your basic office or weekend wear, but with a bit more than you bargained for. The straight lines, tailored cuts, and seamless tailoring remain but are now prettified with what could be the brand’s new signature: glimpses of chic and feminine details that subtly liven up a fashion piece. Gina recognizes that even the littlest detail counts, be it a ruffled seam or an added button. She knows that it’s ultimately what people use as a peg for quality.

Kashieca’s new autumn collection, which is out in mid-May, provides an eyeful of detail. Some are evident, others require close scrutiny. Pleasant surprise factors come as you realize that a classic striped dress shirt has a cuff in a different print, or that a top displays a row of refined pearl buttons. Basic pieces are edge in detail drama with wider belt loops on simple white pants or strips of delicate eyelet lace on a white shirt. Silhouettes are also a bit more adventurous. Gina inserts box pleats on skirts, darting techniques on shirts, and tailored cuts on tops. Women can be obsessive about details and Kashieca caters to this weakness without putting too much emphasis on trend surveillance or over-the-top appliqués.

The new Kashieca continues the dainty detailing found in its clothes with the store’s interiors. The Kashieca boutiques, post-redecoration, are standing paeans to femininity. A pale, candy pink details the interiors set off by subtle off-white walls and warm lighting. The Glorietta store is made to look like a woman’s boudoir. As with its clothing line, the new Kashieca team inserts endearing details to the store interiors. In the Glorietta store, shelves display a few personal necessities of a young professional such as chick lit books, an old camera, childhood figurines, a beloved teddy bear, and some clothing pieces. These personal endearments are posterized in huge framed blow-ups hanging on the walls of the boutique – serene reminders of the of a girl’s transition into a stylish woman.

The window displays are also admirable showcases of the restructured brand’s love for creative detail. Kashieca’s first line of attraction flaunts pink lampshades hovering over old-style mannequins (voluptuous wooden uppers with netted metal legs). A woman’s delicate facial features are wittily painted on the shades–black vintage-style doodles on girly pink accents. Inside, out, and in between, Kashieca is all woman.

Kashieca boutiques are located at Glorietta 2, Alabang Town Center, Gateway Mall, and Robinsons Galleria.

* * *

E-mail author at ana_kalaw@pldtdsl.net.