Making the modern gentleman

What does it take to make the modern gentleman? With a love of art and design New Zealand menswear label, French 83, provides a twist on classic suiting for the young professional. Add a dash of our good old Kiwi lifestyle and they've got a great brand story that works for their international clientele. Sonia Sly meets the team to find out why they took an unconventional approach to their business model by launching in Beijing, before breaking into the New Zealand marketplace.

Notch, armano, peaked and shawl lapels to the besom, patch, welt and flap pocket. Menswear is all about the details and new label, French 83 are providing a twist on classic staples to create contemporary suiting for the modern man.

Located at the bottom of Auckland's Anzac Avenue, the label shares the space with a hair salon - get your hair done and then head to the back of the store to shop up a storm, or the other way around. It's convenient, and exactly the way that men like to shop.

What you'll find at French 83 are beautifully laid out racks and shelves set against a natural wood interior. The look is clean, elegant and boasts a sophisticated edge. There are bomber jackets in contemporary prints to suits and even a brushed cotton shirt features unexpectedly on the racks, which designer Nicole Wesseling says is about catering to the needs of the guy who has a life away from his city office job.

The label has been running for five years with one of its founders, Peter Cheng, now based in China. Intensive research into the market and manufacturing process began before launching retail stores in New Zealand and Beijing. In its early stages the label worked closely with students at Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design, the very place they found designer Nicole Wesseling, who had dreams of starting her own label. She still does womenswear on the side, but French 83 is her main focus.

"It's ridiculous designing straight out of uni, but I just rolled with it," says Nicole.

The 24-year-old says that designing for the menswear label is similar to when she was creating collections at fashion school. She pulls ideas from different places and largely works on her own throughout the design process.

French 83's target audience is the young professional and their market extends across to Asia. In China and Hong Kong their clients are largely European and Nicole says it's important to keep both markets in mind…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details