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Dublin

20th Aug 2020

Irish designers to bring pop of colour to St Stephen’s Green

Lynda Keogh

The world has changed hugely over the last number of months. Small and local businesses have struggled in this new weird world in which we’ve found ourselves, but sometimes there are good news stories…

All in all, 2020 has just been a bit of a sh*tshow for us all. In saying this, it is always important to make sure we stop and take note of the good things going on in the world in the midst of this madness. This one is definitely a good news story to note.

Friends and business partners Jill Deering and Gillian Henderson created the well-known vibey (and aptly named) brand Jill&Gill. From screen prints to apparel and handmade paper – it seems like this talented duo are savage at pretty much anything they put their hand to.

Jill&Gill’s prints and pieces used to only be available online, or at various pop-up showcases.. but guess what? They’ve just secured a prime spot on St. Stephen’s Green for their first bricks-and-mortar store! The store will take over the unit previously occupied by Oasis, flanked by retail neighbours Reiss and Topshop. Looking forward to seeing what the space looks like when it all comes together.

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We thought we were pretty lucky to find a new studio and office space at the end of lockdown on beautiful Francis Street. To be honest, we'd actually just about given up hope on finding a sense of place for the Jill & Gill brand in Dublin altogether. But, after only moving in a month ago we now find ourselves opening a bricks-and-mortar store right on St. Stephens Green with the backing of Aviva Life, @championgreen.ie and @kilkennyshop Its been a journey to get here, like so many small businesses it was our online sales that kept things afloat, the incredible support from so many of you downloading our colouring books to those of you who shopped with us not just once but multiple times, even when it took 2/3 weeks for your order to be delivered due to Covid restrictions. Thank you because not only has that support made us love what we do, even more, it's given Jill & Gill as a brand an even bigger sense of community and drive to bring just that to this new store. So expect colour, freshness, a modern twist on what it is to be an Irish business, a retail experience and as much support as we can give to our fellow creatives and small businesses. Expect a sense of pride when you walk through our doors in September. Right, a good night's sleep might be in order we think! #championgreen #openforbusiness #backingirish #supportsmallbusiness #shopirish #dublin #designireland #creativeireland #wearamask? #retail2020 #jillandgill #smallbusinesses #femaleentrepreneur

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It’s safe to say we’ve all fallen in love with their fashion pieces. In particular, I’m very partial to Jill&Gill’s ‘Boss Ladies‘ collection – bright base colours with strong line illustrations of iconic women such as Iris Apfel, Frieda Kahlo and Yayoi Kusama.

The launch date for Jill&Gill ‘the store’ is still TBC, but safe to say that we will definitely be keeping an eye on this one. I’ve no doubt that it’s set to be an explosion of happy colours and vibes that we all need right about now.

I can’t wait to see what will come next from these Boss Ladies.

 

Lead Image via Instagram.com/jillandgill

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