The Interview: Natalie Reynolds and Lexi Panayi, Co-founders, Style Cheat

Womenswear brand Style Cheat was founded last year by sisters Lexi Panayi and Natalie Reynolds with the aim of creating a brand which fuses “Australian beach vibe and London city attitude”.

The brand is recognised for its affordable wardrobe essentials consisting of timeless prints and directional colour palettes.

Style Cheat's current route to market includes its own direct-to-consumer website and is also stocked on Asos and SilkFred.

Coming from a family fashion business which supplies to some of the high street's major names, both sister have a long history of working in the fashion industry. Co-founders, Natalie Reynolds and Lexi Panayi tell TheIndustry.fashion more:

Could you tell us a little bit about your background?

We have grown up within the fashion industry. Our family business designs and manufacturers for the leading UK high street, retailers such as Topshop, Karen Millen, Debenhams and Coast.

You launched in the UK last year, what was the response like?

The response was amazing, we didn't expect to have such a great launch but with the help of celebrities and influencers wearing the brand it really helped boost brand awareness and therefore sales.

What is your brand DNA?

We have always said that Style Cheat offers a mix of Australian beach babe mixed with London city attitude and we stick by this. We are a very feminine brand but offer iconic animal prints and timeless silhouettes.

Who is your target audience?

We believe that our customers attitude has a lot to do with how she wears our items. We see our customer being between 25 - 45 but understand that it’s not what she wears but how she wears it. We realise that a lot of women don't have the time to spend scrolling through pages and pages of fashion, she might be busy with work or home life and children, so we want to make it easy for her to look and feel great.

What sets you apart from other British fashion retailers?

I think we understand exactly what our customer wants, she wants great fabric, a nice fit but doesn't want to break the bank!

Style Cheat Face Masks

You recently introduced face masks as part of your offering, tell us more?

When the pandemic hit, we both wanted to do something to make a difference so in April, we decided to produce a range of face masks using our iconic prints from surplus fabric we had from production. All masks are 3 ply and are made from natural breathable fibres such as cotton and viscose.

This also meant that the masks were sustainable as well as washable. We launched our Let’s Mask Together Campaign which meant for every face mask sold, we would donate a medical grade mask to front line workers, so far donating 30,000 medical masks. The response has been amazing and we are both so happy that we could help.

How can fashion retailers benefit by offering facemasks as part of their product categories?

I think the important part to remember is that face coverings are to help stop the spread of the virus. This should be the main aim for retailers selling face coverings.

How has the Style Cheat direct-to-consumer website been performing throughout this uncertain period?

E-commerce has been performing really well over the last couple of months. We have actually had some of our record months during lockdown. We feel that this is due to people shopping more online and we have been proactive with our marketing strategies.

Are you seeing that customers are now looking for something new to wear – for going out and going on holiday – now that lockdown has eased.

Yes, dress sales have risen with a demand for summer day dresses and tops have been on the up over the last 3 months which is great and we see this continuing.

How has Style Cheat been adapting to such challenging times?

We had to be reactive to the challenging times, throughout lockdown we were really present of social media, offering lots of free LIVE classes for our followers such as workout, cooking and dance classes. With lockdown easing it has meant that we can now spend time focusing on AW and SS21. It has given us time to take a step back and think about how we can expand into different markets.

Is the Coronavirus pandemic one of the biggest challenges facing fashion today?

The high street has been suffering for a long time, but the retailers with large rents will suffer the most. I think this has to be one of the most challenging times that the fashion industry has faced. Retailers need to be reactive and boost their online presence if they want a sustainable future.

What challenges did you face when setting up the brand?

Starting any new brand is difficult, I don't think there was any one challenge though, just a lot of hard work and long hours. We had all of the infrastructure and supply base set up already, so this helped us, but I can imagine that this would be difficult if we didn't have a background in the industry. We are teaching ourselves new things daily and when mistakes happen, we just ensure we learn from these.

What’s next for Style Cheat?

We want to continue to grow, we have an exciting 'school run mum' edit coming out in September which we are all really excited and feel passionate about. We are also starting to grow in international markets and are working on building a presence in the United States. We are currently stocked on ASOS and SilkFred but we are in talks with another major retailer about being stocked on their online platform.

What advice would you give to anyone starting a fashion brand?

We would say that you have to be extremely motivated and passionate to do it. It is a tough industry but we would recommend ensuring you have a good supply chain and that you do a lot of research into your potential customer.