Anita’s innate approach is to create a bespoke dress that flatters a bride’s body.
It was first coined in the 2010s about Hollywood stars, but the term “nepo baby” has come to refer to anyone who gains success or opportunities through nepotism, or family connections.
Suggest to Anita Turner that she might be a nepo baby and the 60-year-old will laugh.
But Anita, the owner and head designer of legendary New Zealand bridal couture business Vinka Design, admits there was never any doubt that she would follow her mother, the late Vinka Lucas MNZM, into the business.
“I’ve got a photo of myself, aged two, sitting on Mum’s knee while she’s sketching a wedding dress,” recalls Anita. “From five years old, I had a sewing machine and was making dolls’ dresses in the workroom with the adult seamstresses. I never considered pursuing any other career.”
Vinka, who started her eponymous label in 1959 shortly after moving to New Zealand from Croatia, dressed thousands of brides over the years and, together with her husband, started New Zealand’s first bridal magazine.
After finishing school, Anita began designing and sewing alongside Vinka. When her mother suffered a stroke in 2009 and was forced to step away from the day-to-day running of the business, Anita took up the baton.
Today, the mother of two adult daughters designs and helps make every dress, although she’s quick to point out the considerable input from her small team.
“We’re a tight team and we’re very collaborative. It’s also important to me that I have a hand in sewing each dress. I could save a lot of money outsourcing production overseas but then I wouldn’t have control over how the dress is made or how it fits. I need to stand behind every Vinka dress which is why we keep it all in-house.”
While the brand has moved seamlessly into the 21st century, reflecting current bridal trends, two things that haven’t changed are the attention to detail that continues Vinka’s legacy of craftsmanship, and the bespoke bridal service.
“A bridal dress is the most important dress a woman will ever wear. I consider it a huge privilege to be able to create a dream dress for a woman so that she feels absolutely beautiful on her big day.”
Anita’s innate approach is to create a bespoke dress that flatters a bride’s body.
“A woman’s body is all hills and valleys and no two bodies are the same. The key is to understand those hills and valleys and design for them.”
Most of Anita’s clients are from New Zealand and Australia, although brides based in Europe, North America and Asia have also walked down the aisle in a Vinka Design dress. “Often they’re Kiwis living overseas who are coming home to get married.”
The process can start as far as a year out, with brides visiting Anita to discuss their dream dress in person.
“We’ll cover what they like and don’t like, and how that translates into a dress that will suit not only their figure but also their particular wedding, because what you wear to a beach wedding isn’t necessarily what you’d wear to get married in a cathedral.”
There are usually three or four fittings, with the standard turnaround time being three months. “But we have created a dress in six weeks, which isn’t ideal but we managed it.”
Key to the label’s success is giving brides the perfect dress for their budget.
“The other day a bride brought in as inspiration a picture of Elie Saab’s daughter-in-law in a dress that cost around $100,000. I said to the bride, we can be clever with the fabric and lace we use so that we can still achieve a similar kind of silhouette and design but do it in a more restrained way.”
While Anita has stayed true to her mother’s philosophy of hand-crafted, bespoke wedding dresses that lean into tradition, elegance and innovation, she gets much of her inspiration from overseas trips.
“I try to get to Europe once a year to see what’s going on with the wedding market over there, because that sets the scene for so much of what New Zealand brides want. It allows me to tap into different cultures because everything, from the architecture to the mosaics and fashion, inspires me.”
When Together Journal calls, Anita has just returned from a photo-shoot in Marrakesh, where her eldest daughter Helena modelled her designs.
“Once I knew I was going to Morocco, I started designing pieces that would work with that amazing backdrop. I took more than 12 gowns and separates, and we collaborated with two amazing London-based Kiwi photographers for what was a fantastic experience.”
Other locations on her bucket list include India and South America. “The people and culture in those places are hugely inspiring to me.”
Like most designers, sustainability is never far from Anita’s mind. But unlike other designers, she has a key weapon in her arsenal – Vinka’s stash of vintage fabrics.
“Mum kept a storage unit of beautiful fabrics and trims from France and Switzerland, some of which are 50 years old. When a bride wants a more vintage look or something a little different, I can dip into Vinka’s box of treasures and find something amazing.”
Anita’s extensive range of fabric and lace also sets her apart from other designers, including her decision to keep entire bolts of fabric on site.
“Some designers work with small sampler pieces of lace and fabric, but I find having a real selection of bolts of fabrics, with beadings and laces on hand makes it so much easier to drape the fabric, allowing the bride to see what it might look like.”
For more information, visit vinkadesign.co.nz and @vinkadesign.