Spain's Neck & Neck is muy bonita

My baby girl Riana is already 17 years old and my baby boy Sebi is 13. Long gone are the days when I had autonomy over their wardrobe and had the pleasure of dressing them up in cute colorful outfits. When I saw the latest collection of Neck & Neck, Spain’s children’s wear brand, I wished I had a baby to dress up once again because their clothes are simply adorable!

Neck & Neck is a Spanish-family business owned by the Zamacola siblings; it found its provenance in Marbella in the summer of 1993, during one of the Zamacolas’ yearly sojourns to Spain’s vacation capital. The first Neck & Neck boutique, of course, opened fittingly in the sun and sea paradise in 1993 and was an instant success among the Spaniards. 

In 1998, after buying out their father and establishing Neck Child S.A., the Zamacola siblings moved their operations to Madrid and began extending their domestic operations aggressively while pursuing international business prospects passionately. Today, Neck & Neck is sold in 12 countries, with 200 stores spread across Europe, the Middle East and now Asia, with the opening of their first store in the Philippines at Rustan’s Department Store in Makati.

 Like me, you may be wondering why Neck & Neck? How can a Spanish brand have such an un-Spanish name? So at an intimate lunch with two of the owners — siblings Maria and Eduardo Zamacola Ballestero — I simply had to ask. Just like many great ideas, they explained, Neck & Neck got its name quite randomly. Joaquin, a family member with twins, was in love with the UK brand Holland & Holland. Liking the sound of the repeated words of the brand and having two babies growing “neck to neck,” he suggested the name to the rest of the family. Unorthodox, catchy and straightforward, they adopted the name and the story of Neck & Neck began.  

I asked Maria Zamacola Ballestero, development director of Neck & Neck, why they decided to open their first Asian boutique in Manila when all the international brands always headed for China first. Her immediate answer was, “Why not the Philippines?” She explains that it seemed the natural choice for them to open in Manila first because of the similarity in culture and traditions between Spain and the Philippines. “We have the same concept of family, Filipinos understand Spanish mentality,” she adds. With their sights set on the Philippines, they asked their good friend Monica Zobel (of the Zobel de Ayala family) to help them find the right partner here.

Monica Zobel, a friend they spend summers with in Soto Grande, suggested the Tantocos of Rustan’s. In a matter of months and over several meetings, Neck & Neck and Rustan’s exclusive partnership was sealed.

“We couldn’t be happier,” enthused Maria during the store’s recent launch.

I love the European fashion sensibility that Neck & Neck evokes; their clothes are casual and laidback but anchored on classical details and multi-toned embroidery. The garments are slightly capricious but polished and definitively preppy. The brand is careful to keep the spirited vibe of the children they design for in mind while keeping tabs on the latest runway trends. Their clothes look just as lovely on the seaside resorts of the Mediterranean as they do on the streets of cosmopolitan cities across the globe.

Neck & Neck carries a collection of reasonably priced clothes and accessories for ages zero to 14. The latest line is made up of easy to mix and match pieces for girls and boys in original and exclusive floral, checks and tie prints together with the season’s “must-have” colors of turquoise, strawberry pink, apple green and red; mauves, blues, mustard and orange add diversity to the color palette of the collection.

Poplin and Oxford shirts take center stage together with twill skirts, cabopinos, bermudas and trousers. The Neck & Neck Sport, an extension of the main brand, is a fashionable hodgepodge of garments that are suitable for different times of the day — washed cotton T-shirts with crochet detailing, cargo shorts in large checks with signature embroidery, polo shirts in a mixture of fabric and pattern, lightweight sports jackets, sweatshirts and knitted tops with a variety of necklines and lengths.

Neck & Neck is big on details — scalloped hemlines, gartered sleeves, lace trimmings, colorful patches and studded pockets, ribbed cuffs and ribbon appliqués are some of the finer and subtle design details that set Neck & Neck apart from other brands. Their dainty velvet shoes and cute-as-a-button series of headbands and hair accessories for girls are mostly handcrafted, beautifully girly girl.

While Spain has been in the financial news, front and center for its dismal economy, Neck & Neck has been able to weather the crisis. “Our domestic sales are strong, our online retail business is growing slowly but steadily, and our plans for expansion are in full swing,” Maria tells me confidently.

The Zamacolas are in talks with potential partners and investors in Singapore and Bangkok; in October, they will open their first store in Shanghai, and in Manila the second store at the Rustan’s-Shangri-La is near completion. By next year Neck & Neck will also be in the bigger and more luxurious Rustan’s Cebu.

Next time you’re in the market for a child’s gift or simply want to update your children’s wardrobe with sensible, quality crafted and fabulously designed outfits, head for Neck & Neck. Once there, you might secretly wish you were a kid yourself again.

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Neck & Neck is available at Rustan’s Department Store in Makati.