Thessy and Yiota Kouzoukas of Sabo Skirt took their social media savvy and love for fashion, and turned it into a global fashion empire. Now, the pair are stepping into a new style arena, sportswear, and we just love the gorgeous (and highly wearable) looks they’ve come up with.
We caught up with the girls from Sabo Skirt to get the latest on their sportswear line and find out just how they made it in the competitive world of fashion.
RESCU: Tell us a little bit about life before Sabo Skirt, how did you come to create the brand?
Yiota Kouzoukas: We were both studying business and working part time, and we shared a love for shopping. We finally decided to blog about our weekly purchases and outfit ideas, and we were shocked when we started receiving hundreds of comments on our outfit posts, with followers requesting information on where to buy our outfits. We instantly saw a business opportunity, and after a year of planning, we created the online store that is Sabo Skirt!
RESCU: Was there an ‘aha’ moment when you knew Sabo Skirt was going to be a success?
Thessy Kouzoukas: Our success has been ongoing and has been built on previous milestones to achieve the position we are at today. One of our first notable moments of success has to have been our inclusion in the Toni and Guy ‘Blogged and Bound Campaign’ with other notable Australian Bloggers.
RESCU: What would you say has made Sabo Skirt such a rising success story?
Yiota Kouzoukas: When we first opened our online store, we were among the forefront of Australian e-Boutiques and Instagram users. Along with this, we’ve had a strong demand for our clothing from our followers since day one because we initially attracted followers with our blog, which means we had a personal connection with them.
RESCU: What is the secret to a successful social media strategy? How can brands use social media to revolutionise their business?
Thessy Kouzoukas: Social media has been an important aspect of our marketing mix. It is a cost-effective way to reach an international target market, and it has allowed us to expand our business on a global scale. We use social media as a way to showcase our items as well as engage with our customers and followers.
RESCU: How has having access to so much feedback through social media influenced your business?
Yiota Kouzoukas: We absolutely love the large amount of feedback that we receive through our social media channels. The feedback allows us to constantly tweak our business plan and products in order to meet our customers’ needs. So social media allows us to stay more aligned with our customers’ expectations!
RESCU: What inspired you to move into the sportswear market with Sabo Sport?
Thessy Kouzoukas: We strongly believe that a healthy lifestyle makes for a happier life. We wanted to encourage our followers and customers to lead more active lives with a unique, colourful range of active wear that inspires people to exercise! Also, we believe sportswear should be just as fashionable as it is functional! We felt there was a gap in the fitness market for affordable and fashion-forward sportswear, and our customers have expressed an interest in an active apparel range designed by us for quite some time.
RESCU: What can we expect to see from Sabo Sport?
Yiota Kouzoukas: It captures the spirit of Sabo Skirt and incorporates our edgy designs and colourful prints, which are all exclusively hand-painted or designed digitally at our headquarters in Brisbane. Individuality is hard to come by in today’s saturated fashion market, particularly at our price point, and we are extremely proud to offer customers our exclusive prints.
RESCU: Finally, as two friends working together, how do you collaborate and what’s the secret to your successful working relationship?
Thessy Kouzoukas: We have been friends for almost ten years, which has definitely had a positive impact on our working relationship. We both have an open communication system with each other and work together through obstacles and problems. We have been each other’s support systems through difficult times and keep each other grounded.
