Award winning new label is helping to generate new economic opportunities for Aboriginal people living in remote Australia
Magpie Goose is a fashion social enterprise showcasing the bright, bold, fabulous textiles designed and hand screen printed in remote Aboriginal communities. The brand was started by welfare rights lawyer Maggie McGowan in Katherine.
Magpie Goose says its mission is twofold: to create opportunities for non-Indigenous people to connect with Aboriginal art, culture and stories through fashion; and to generate new economic opportunities for Aboriginal people living in remote Australia.
The label is named after a bird native to the Top End of Australia. Like its namesake, Magpie Goose is unapologetically “loud and proud”.
Minister for Small Business, the Hon Michael McCormack recently announced the Magpie Goose as the national winner of this year’s Regional Online Heroes competition, run by the Regional Australia Institute (RAI) and Google Australia.
The Regional Online Heroes competition is designed to recognise outstanding regional innovators, and to encourage small and medium sized businesses around the country to realise the potential of mobile and online technologies for growth.
RAI CEO Jack Archer commended the initiative Magpie Goose has shown in its development.
“Through its bright and bold statement clothing, created with fabric designed and screen printed by hand in remote Aboriginal communities, Magpie Goose showcases and celebrates Indigenous people, place and culture,” Mr Jack Archer said.
“Magpie Goose is a fantastic example of how technology can create new job opportunities and foster economic growth in even the most remote communities in regional Australia. Location really is no barrier to success, and this label is a testament to that,” said Mr Archer.
Magpie Goose's first range showcases textiles from four remote community art centres - Palngun Wurnangat (Wadeye), Injalak Arts (Gunbalanya), Tiwi Design (Wurrumiyanga, Tiwi Islands) and Bábbarra Women’s Centre (Maningrida). The collection features “simple yet powerful”, classic dresses, shorts, skirts and tops, made from 12 different prints. Each design tells a story - of people, place and culture.
Currently, Magpie Goose is being incubated by Enterprise Learning Projects (ELP), an organisation dedicated to fostering and supporting grassroots business development in partnership remote Aboriginal communities. ELP's support will enable Magpie Goose to grow into an inclusive business, facilitating opportunities for those in ELP's partner communities to be involved in brand development, content creation, sales and marketing, textile design, media/communications and modelling. As the business grows, so too will opportunities for Aboriginal people to get involved in different facets of the venture.
Purchasing fabrics in large quantities from remote community art centre partners also supports their growth, providing a guaranteed market for their fabric and designs. This means they can scale their businesses and offer more jobs for artists, designers and screenprinters, and keep their art centres strong.
From November 2017 Magpie Goose clothing will be 100% Australian made, as they transition manufacturing from a team in Bali to Sphinx Australia, an Ethical Clothing Australia (ECA) accredited workshop in Bankstown, Sydney.