A rush of excitement

This is the inspiring story of how a Hollywood star came to wear–and love–a Kamiseta.

Alicia Silverstone, the beguiling star of such movies as Clueless, Batman & Robin, Excess Baggage and The Crush, was so smitten by Kamiseta clothes, she sweetly asked after her pictorial for the fashion brand, "Wow, these are really nice! Can I keep them?"

Who would have thought that after its branch first opened at the Megamall in 1991, Kamiseta would claim the distinction of being the first Filipino fashion brand to have as its endorser a true-blue Hollywood star?

Nobody has been as surprised by Kamiseta’s good turn than Shoppesville CEO/president Gonzalo "Gunn" Roque III. He recalls how nervous he was when the first Kamiseta store opened in l991 at SM Megamall. "At that time," Gunn remembers, "we were only a few stores there and I was afraid the mall might not get filled up."

But in what turned out to be an auspicious case of timing, Gunn and Kamiseta rode the crest of the boom of Metro malls–and the Filipina’s increasing need for dependably stylish casual apparel–and there was no stopping Kamiseta from then on.

Kamiseta has continued to be among the dominant labels in the local fashion market, now with a total of 29 branches nationwide. Given how the country has been awash with foreign labels and how the past year was marked by an economic crunch, that is something Gunn and his countrymen can be delighted about.

The year 2002 has been a hallmark of sorts for Kamiseta. To market-watchers, the choice of Alicia Silverstone aptly mirrors the globalization of today’s fashion tastes in general–and the inevitability of globalization as the way to go for Filipino brands like Kamiseta in particular.

In 2002, Kamiseta also snagged the National Consumers Excellence Awardee (Best Apparel Brand), the latest in a list of prestigious awards–2001 Best Local TV Ad-Clothing; 2001 Most Outstanding Apparel Brand; 2000 Store of the Year; 2000 Retailer of the Year;1999 Marketing Excellence Award; and 1998 Retailer of the Year.

"How did we do it? We focus on our market which is the female fashionista," Gunn explains. "Unlike other stores, we started–and we still are–for the cool, hip, youthful and active young lady. Day in and day out, all we think about is creating collections that fit the Filipina. We get only the best materials and combine them with the latest fashion trends to come up with clothes that are authentically Kamiseta.

"Our Design Department is very dynamic; we keep changing our styles. Each time a customer enters our store, she will find new things and will always have a choice. It’s all part of the female psyche. If guys like cars, girls love to shop–and in Kamiseta a girl can really shop."

That Kamiseta did not turn out to be a mere fashion fluke can also be attributed to its innovative marketing and promotional campaigns. Kamiseta set the tone for its trendy, fun and versatile image by choosing the well-bred, wholesome and fresh-faced China Cojuangco as its first endorser. China did not only pose in Kamiseta clothes, she did the rounds of exciting locales like Paris in 1998, New York in 1999 (the year Kamiseta also gave away a red Volkswagen Beetle) and the Olympics in Australia in 2000.

In 2001 China was joined by elder sister Maimai for the first-of-its-kind sister act campaign which celebrated not only Kamiseta’s credo, "It’s fun being a girl," but the joys and camaraderie of sisterhood. With it, Kamiseta had hit a soft spot in the Filipina’s heart–closeness and love of family.

"The sisters flew to Florence," relates Gunn, "and drove around in a red Ferrari. We had a three-series TV commercial that got us a lot of e-mails."

Other kinds of e-mails came as well–inquiries for possible franchises abroad or from ladies asking how to purchase Kamiseta clothes. "We received tons of e-mails from customers studying or living abroad," Gunn says, "and they still want to purchase our products because they can’t seem to find clothes that fit the Filipina lifestyle. This has been music to our ears!"

With endless challenges before them and a whole world to conquer, Gunn reckons, "Because the fashion industry is so fast-paced, it’s so easy to be left behind. It’s sad that some brands end up just copying instead of creating designs. They try desperate marketing campaigns that even mention our brand just to get noticed; they try to pull down the achievements of other brands rather than focus on their own label. These are the dead-weights of the fashion industry because they do not create and they cannot inspire."

Still, looking at the prospects ahead gives Gunn, who has been ably supported all this time by his wife Cris, a rush of excitement. "Aside from (the above-mentioned) fashion industry nuisance, being in the fashion business gives us a rush," he says. "We enjoy the excitement, the creative aspect, the conceptualization, the colors, the fashion forecast, the photo shoots and the edginess of it all. Not everyone is cut out for this type of work but we wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

"Kamiseta is not only about making clothes. It’s about passion. It’s in everything we do. It’s loving what you’re doing with a point of view. Blouses can be copied, marketing campaigns can be copied but we are building a brand and when a girl loves it, she’ll stay with it. That’s how we were able to build this company to where it is right now."– AMMO