Meet your new favourite local label, Milkbar

Meet your new favourite local label, Milkbar.

If you’ve scoured the web searching for small inner Melbourne clothing before, you’ve likely come across Milkbar.

(Credit: Milkbar)

The label, known for form-fitting garments and quality basics, is the brain-child of self-taught sewist, Simon Agosta. Born out of Melbourne’s creative scene, Milkbar has put itself on the city’s street-wear and garment making map.

Australian culture and community was the main inspiration for Simon to create the label. The Australiana style is something that has been referenced in other brands, such as Mutimer. The green and gold garments, once sold as tourist merchandise at the Queen Victoria Market, has now moved into the wardrobes of Melbournians, sparking a second wave of nationalist pride similar to what was seen in the 80s.

However, the form-fitting silhouette has been part of Australia’s identity since the end of World War 2. The idea of Australia being a ‘working man’s paradise’ meant a lot of the immigrants who were, and still are, working warehousing or manufacturing jobs lead to the increased demand for workwear and under-garments. 

Form fitting clothing has been popular in Australia for various, but mostly two, reasons: 

comfort and flexibility.

Australia is a hot country, and as the British colonised Australia, they brought their garments, formal dresses with bodices and formal suits. As time passed and Australia moved away from its British identity, a new identity of beach, barbecue and sport-loving emerged, not tied down to the British formality of life.

Australia is too hot for this attire everyday, so what can we wear? T-shirts and pants provide some relief, especially those mostly made from cotton. Cotton is a breathable fabric, perfect for heat and perfect for sport. It moves with your body and mostly keeps its shape while doing so. 

“I wanted to invite Australians to see our culture and our home in the way I saw it,” Simon said. 

The Swanston Gazette spoke to Simon from Milkbar to see how the brand came to be and what he thinks of the Australian fashion scene. 

TSG: Hey Simon, how did the label start? Walk us through those early days. 

Simon: To keep it brief, I snapped my knee at 18. I couldn't walk upstairs to my bedroom so I was sleeping in my Mum's old sewing room with my Nonna’s (grandmother’s) past down sewing equipment. Being quite immobile at the time, I began sewing a couple hours a night which eventually turned into 6-8 hours a night. Mum taught me the basics of sewing and then I self taught myself pattern making, everything from scratch. Very quickly I became quite obsessive in creating the best garments I could. After 6 months of constant sampling, I started selling the garments online through preorders.

How did the name ‘Milkbar’ come about? 

The name has shown to be a triple entendre as I've continued with the brand. I chose the name "Milkbar" because I wanted something that was proudly Australian and felt locally nostalgic as my brand is often trying to reinterpret our culture and romanticise it, especially in the early days. 

As time went on and the processes of [making the garments] weren’t the same, I was no longer sewing the garments by hand myself and manufacturing moved off shore, I grappled a lot with having to make those decisions. The name actually gave me a lot of perspective as "Milkbars" don't exist anymore. They basically got made redundant by the larger supermarkets. Funnily enough, true to the name, I had been building a very nostalgic and not very functional business, but it made me think. A lot of Milkbars have been given new life in the past decade as cafes or bars. Over the past 1-2 years, I've had to make similar internal changes in the business to keep it alive. 

The third meaning that it holds to me is the irony of "Milkbar" being synonymous with Australia yet it was never the white anglo-saxons or larrikins that owned them, it was often European, Asian or Middle Eastern immigrants owning them. I hold that thought quite dearly that something so Australian is defined by our multiculturalism. It shares my beliefs on what I see Australia to be.

How has the label evolved through the years?

It's something that's changed and I've thought about it a lot lately. At the start, I thought the point of the brand was to romanticise Australian culture. There will always be an element of that but what I realised I was really trying to do is bring the elements of romanticism and cinematic feelings to the mundane. An invitation to gratitude or romanticism in a sense. 

At the time, I wanted to invite Australians to see our culture and our home in the way I saw it. Now, we actually get the majority of our orders from an international audience. I'll continue to try and show our beautiful culture to the world but I'll also be taking my language of romanticism and putting that lens on other subcultures and themes.

Why do you think there has been a shift away from oversized garments in the last few years? Why did you chose to specalise in it? 

I could foresee this coming through the middle of Covid. Often, whatever the opposite is of the current trend, you can bet on it being cool in 5 years. Multiple cultural movements pointed me in the direction of a more fitted look for men. Firstly, the over saturation of baggy clothing and loungewear/overall casual dress during Covid was gonna force fashion enthusiasts elsewhere, as it always does. 

The other thing that came out of Covid was the health and wellness movement. I knew while people put all this effort into their health and therefore their body, they'd also at some point want to show that off. It just had to be shown in a tasteful way. Lastly, trends have moved to a more 50s-80s language as opposed to 90s-00s in some ways which led me to the silhouettes i’m designing now.

Supply chain is so important to customers now. Where do you get your materials from? 

I've been very lucky to connect with brilliant product developers over the past year, who share almost 40 years of experience in the industry between them. Nothing is more valuable than having great talents in your corner, (especially talent) that have worked with the great brands [in] the Australian scene over the past decade. Also teaching tailoring at RMIT which is helpful with where I see the brand going design wise.

There is an agency called Cloak and Dagger, and through them I'm able to access a wide variety of fabrics and supply chain options that they've built over the past 20 years. 

For me, fabric is all about fibre and handfeel.

What are you most proud of in your work on your label? 

The fact that I've been able to turn it into something real. The balance of both worlds is always what I'm most proud of. I love creating something unique and meaningful to me but I will say it doesn't feel great when the process or the result of doing that isn't sustainable. To create great things you need great talent. I want to pay all those people [involved in the process] what they deserve to be paid and I can't do that if the business isn't functioning well. I'm very proud that I can be creative and take risks while still making this a functional business. This is a new feeling and I'm incredibly grateful.

What do you wish you knew when you started?

Nothing. If I could comprehend how hard this was gonna be I never would have done it.

Who do you think is most exciting in AU/NZ fashion right now? 

So many great friends of mine. Porter James has written a playbook on modern fashion, Mutimer has been a trail blazer, Raf with Above the Ground has taken incredible risks to enter the footwear market and Massimo and Alessia are always fantastic with their art direction through Observe. P Johnson is also the goat Australian fashion brand.

Is there any iconic fit in particular that reminds you why fitted pieces will be timeless? 

Marlon Brando and James Dean in the classic tight fitted white t-shirts come to mind. It really is the classic cool look. For me, in the same way that I'm sure females can remember seeing a certain celebrity or actress in a movie and being in awe of a certain outfit, I always found the simple stylings of something like a fitted t-shirt on a male lead to be quite aspirational as a child.

Who is in your wardrobe right now?

P.Johnson, Archive Christian Dior.

How can we buy one of your pieces?

On my website milkbarmelbourne.com

To keep up with Simon and Milkbar, head here.