Seventeen-year-old womenswear boutique Stable in Albert Park now has a new counterpart up north. Meet Mane, the unisex fashion, accessories, homewares and fragrance boutique making shopping an offline event again.
The heritage-listed, if-you-know-you-know spot sits above consignment store Swop in Collingwood, with hand-painted signage drawing the style-conscious up into its spacious, open-plan store. Sandalwood incense wafts through the studio space, and chrome furnishings, tinted glass and fluorescent Perspex tables house collectable objects and knick-knacks.
Founder Lauren Nicholls has over two decades of international fashion-buying expertise, yet Mane is unlike any venture she’s put her name to. Previously she’s created Stable (formerly Filly’s Stable), On Parks (her womenswear label), Green Pony (her now-defunct children’s line).
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SIGN UP“We felt clear that we wanted to bring the best of Stable to Mane … but with a broader, more diverse mix of both local and global brands,” Nicholls tells Broadsheet. “We also knew our Stable customer base was growing and the opportunity to do something playful and unique in Australian retail had arrived.”
While you’ll find some similar labels across her Albert Park and Collingwood locales, like Nagnata and Ganni, Mane is edgier, younger and more experimental. “It’s not so quiet luxury,” Nicholls says. Alix Higgins, Martine Rose and Conner Ives are some of the new offerings, as well as a PAM activation custom-designed by Soft Baroque.
On buying trips to Paris in the last few years, Nicholls noticed the changing face of menswear. “[It’s] becoming an exciting space, [with] retailers giving it front-and-centre real estate in major stores. This is something I had never really seen before, so we introduced men’s as well as a more gender-fluid approach to style.”
Doors only opened in December, yet the new kid on the block has drawn undeniable buzz. The store’s lush furnishings and coveted brands make it natural social media fodder.
Nicholls reminiscences about standing in the untouched, empty shell of the property. “These sorts of spaces are very rare and have usually already been snapped up for developments in the inner city.” The sheer scale of the shop, and the first-floor location, allowed her to dream big.
“The element of surprise and discovery – which has now become part of the Mane DNA – in terms of how we buy and present the retail space, also helped to shape the visual fit-out and overall design inspiration.”
Collingwood-based interior-design firm Studio Manifold led this transformation (they also spearheaded Stable’s 2022 refurbishment). The “intersection between nostalgic furniture mixed with innovative and surprising layers” has driven the eclectic fit-out.
Nicholls’s favourite part of the store is in the far back corner. An oversized, semi-circular cobalt blue couch invites visitors to sink in. “It’s such a great spot to sit if you’ve got friends trying on things; it doesn’t feel like you need to get up anytime soon,” Nicholls says. “To go to a retail store and not buy online, you’ve got to have an experience, it’s more than just the product these days.”
And she’s right. During a quick visit to the store with a friend, we meet Andrew, one of Mane’s retail associates. Within minutes, we were chatting about his antique locket and the aforementioned sandalwood incense.
“If you don’t want to go out to a bar or a restaurant, how do you meet people? You know, [visiting Mane] is kind of a nice way for people to get out and about without having to commit to a meal or alcohol or something like that,” Nicholls says.
“It’s fun. Whether they’re purchasing that day or not, I want them to know that they can come back and they can spend time in the space. Like, take a magazine, take a seat. It’s more than just a transactional environment. That’s what I’m hoping for.”
Mane
Level 1/10 Peel St, Collingwood
Opening Hours
Mon to Sat 10am–6pm
Sun 11am–5pm