“Reconsider What Comes Next”: Cult New Zealand Label Wynn Hamlyn Takes Indefinite Pause

After a decade, Wynn Hamlyn is ceasing its operations, at least for now. Last week, the New Zealand label dropped its spring/summer collection, which will be its last for the foreseeable future.

“Ten years ago, I left my job as a land surveyor to pursue an idea that felt instinctive, uncertain, and full of possibility. What it has grown into has far exceeded anything I could have imagined,” founder Wynn Crawshaw said in a post on Instagram.  

Founded in 2015 by the Bay of Plenty local, Wynn Hamlyn quickly grew into the quietly confident contemporary label it’s now known as. Technical knitwear is its specialty, and abstract knitting and roping techniques became instant Wynn Hamlyn identifiers. 

Over the years, it’s shown at New Zealand Fashion Week and Australian Fashion Week, and built up an overseas retailer roster including US department store Saks and Canadian online retailer Ssense. It’s these international partnerships that have contributed to the label’s announcement. Earlier this year, Saks Global filed for bankruptcy protection, and last year, Ssense did the same.

Speaking to the Australian Financial Review, Crawshaw said, “It’s not sustainable for a fashion company to have to wait 90 days after delivering a product – at a minimum – to be paid. I have my own suppliers to pay.”

In contrast, the label’s Australian retailers were well-performing, with stockists including Incu, Mode Sportif and The Iconic.

“Over time, the landscape around us has shifted,” Crawshaw wrote on Instagram. “The model we’ve been working within no longer supports the way we want to create. While our direct-to-consumer business continues to grow strongly year on year, the broader structure around it is no longer serving us in the way it once did.”

In fact, according to The Known Agency founders Kate Killey and Samantha Etchells, Wynn Hamlyn’s direct-to-consumer sales have grown 30 per cent year-on-year since 2023. In the fashion PR company’s client roster, Wynn Hamlyn is its “number one brand for Australian sales”. “We are confident the brand would have a bright future trajectory with the appropriate investment, structure and business planning,” the pair said in a statement. 

“Rather than forcing something that doesn’t feel right, I’ve made the decision to pause – to honour what we’ve built, and to allow space to step back and reconsider what comes next,” Crawshaw wrote. “To everyone who has been part of this journey – who has worn the pieces, supported the collections, and believed in the vision – thank you. You’ve shaped this brand as much as I have.”