Name Elisabeth Findlay | ||
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Elisabeth Findlay, better known as Liz Findlay, is a New Zealand fashion designer. She co-founded the fashion house Zambesi with her husband, Neville Findlay, in 1979. She is the daughter of Greek–Ukrainian immigrants and is the sister of Margarita Robertson, the designer at fashion label Nom D, who shares an equally high profile in New Zealand. Both Zambesi and Nom D are among the country's best known exporting labels.
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Career
Findlay was born in Athens, Greece. In 1951 the Red Cross relocated her family to Dunedin, New Zealand. Her mother taught her and her sisters how to sew, she never received any formal training in fashion design. At 21 she moved to Auckland and got a job working at a clothing company. Through this experience she learned how to use industrial machines and the production behind clothes.
In 1976, encouraged by her sister, she opened Tart boutique store in Parnell Auckland. She selected labels to sell based on her own taste and included New Zealand designers such as Marilyn Sainty. She sold only a few garments in the store of her own design.
In 1979, her husband left his job as a design engineer and they opened Zambesi. Their first store was on Lorne Street in Auckland.
The label first gained international acclaim in 1991 when they were first invited to show at Australia Fashion week in Sydney. This was the first year the New Zealand designers were invited to show at the Fashion week.
Exhibitions
2005, Zambesi: Edge of Darkness Auckland Museum