Girls of summer

When Bayo first hung up their cropped polo shirt, the girls of Manila fell hard. The preppy label hasn’t looked back since, spawning hundreds of takes on the little polo shirt — striped, embellished with Bayo’s signature deer logo or covered in a nautical navy. Soon the little label that could was churning out cute, trendy pieces every budget-conscious fashionista and her equally trendy friend wanted to snap up faster than you could say "sold out."

Expanding into underwear, swimwear and now footwear and bags, the little label has become one homegrown hit that doesn’t look to outer shores for inspiration. Tees inscribed with such snappy slogans as "Rock Manila" in metallic fonts flew off the racks — making Bayo part of the Pinoy pride movement.

And the label’s owners proudly celebrate all that’s Filipino, picking endorsers who not only espouse the label’s values but also carry a torch for the country, whether in sports or entertainment.

Enter Kitchie and Barbie, arguably one of the most popular local singers Bayo’s tween-and-up market has ever known. Which explains how the pretty twosome landed the label’s ad campaign.

When Bayo decided to shift gears, from the house of preppy staples to something with a harder, funkier edge, the label had to find a face to fit the look. And no doubt they found two of the most-played voices on radio today.

Finding the perfect fit between label and model is hard to come by, but Bayo’s gotten it just right. "Bayo used to be preppy," says Barbie, who wasn’t quite the target market to begin with. It wasn’t until the label transitioned to a different look that she could comfortably relate to it. "Now that Bayo’s kind of more rock, I can honestly say that I’m happy with their new line."

Fond of layering, Barbie finds it easy to mix new and old Bayo with her current wardrobe. "Their stuff is easy to put together and funkify," she adds.

"Now that they have more embellished stuff, it’s nice to mix the more detailed pieces with rugged clothes," says Kitchie, who enjoys wearing fashions with a "personal touch."

"They’re not safe," she says, "and that’s what I like about Bayo."

Now that the label’s cornered the market on preppy and rock, what could be next for the label? "All I know is that that a lot of my friends buy Bayo," she explains.

Well they don’t have to conquer other untapped markets, according to Kitchie. "They’ve captured a large market," she says, "and most of that market seems to be my friends."