Retail

Husband-and-wife team Russel Koskela and Sasha Titchkosky launched Koskela to meet a gap in the market for affordable furniture made in Australia. Their high-quality pieces are crafted in collaboration with domestic manufacturers and Aboriginal artists. In 2012 they moved their Surry Hills showroom to a warehouse space in the industrial suburb of Rosebery; the former factory has a glazed roof that allows in plenty of light.

Aussie brothers Josh and Tull Price founded shoe brand Feit in New York in 2005. Their casual, minimalist kicks are handmade in limited quantities using old Chinese stitching techniques and soft vegetable-tanned leather. Their narrow Sydney shop, located on charming Burton Street, was designed by architect Nick Tobias to feel like a traditional cobbler’s shop. Tasmanian oak panels line the walls and the central display is offset by an unpolished concrete floor, while Feit’s streamlined boxes are neatly stacked along a wall of shelving.

Malls are big business in Sydney but for charm and character we’d recommend a wander through the grand Strand Arcade. Built in 1891, the three-storey thoroughfare between Pitt Street and George Street in the city’s busy CBD is a rare gem of Victorian architecture (and the only surviving arcade of its kind). 

Clip across the tiled floor and explore the 60-plus shops, including Men’s Biz, a grooming specialist, Strand Hatters (why not pick up a traditional Akubra, the iconic Australian bush hat?) and Dinosaur Designs, which stocks handmade jewellery on the first floor. One thing’s for sure: you’ll need a flat white from ground-floor Gumption by Coffee Alchemy to keep your energy up. Take the ornate wooden staircases for a glimpse of the building’s original stained-glass windows.

When Eva Galambos had to expand her boutique Parlour X, she moved to an unlikely new home: a 170-year-old former church in Paddington. “The beauty and history of St John’s epitomises the early Australian architecture of the area,” she says. The space uses the original sandstone walls and stained-glass windows as a backdrop to a selection of high-end women’s clothing. Expect international designers including Céline and Saint Laurent, along with Aussie favourites such as Ellery and Christopher Esber.

Although Saturdays NYC opened in New York’s Soho in 2009, its surf-inspired clothes have unsurprisingly gained a following in other wave-obsessed spots. The Sydney outpost, which opened in late 2015 near Bondi Beach, is a triumph. Its airy interior, floor-to-ceiling windows and in-house coffee bar are a pull for the passing surf crowd. But it’s not just swimming shorts here; there are grooming products and the brand’s full line of clothing too.