When Sock It Up was launched nearly 10 years ago it was all about injecting a bit of fun and coolness into socks and this is still the case for the brand, says Rachael Barton.
“Everything is designed by me,” she says. “They are cool, funky, on-trend, bright socks you want to wear on your feet and the kind of socks you want to give to a friend.”
Sock It Up has grown significantly and its socks are now stocked in close to 3,000 stores Australia-wide.
Exhibiting at Reed Gift Fairs Melbourne last month, Barton says people were ready for something new.
“The fair was incredible. I think there has been a wide variety of people who are just ready to start looking at new products, new lines, expanding what they’ve been doing for the last couple of years and totally stepping out of the old and into the new.
“Between now and Christmas is our biggest time of year. I call it silly sock season, it’s that time when the person you don’t know what to buy for, you give them a pair of socks,” she enthuses.
Burton adds that about 70 per cent of customers at the fair were new and 30 per cent were existing ones.
“Giftware has become everyone’s point of call. We do children socks and adult socks. We also do custom socks. Leopard print has been the most popular. Our socks are unisex. Boys don’t have to wear blue, it’s all about diversification.”
