What I've Learnt - Bettina Liano

WHAT I'VE LEARNT

Ok, like who didn’t have or want a pair of those flattering dark denim Bettina Liano jeans .., they were the most coveted jeans in the 90s, and then there was iconic Bettina, with her red lips and Italian style whose clothes graced the runways, clubs, and cafes of our fashion-driven cities for years ... and then she sort of vanished .. more on that later ...

But now she’s back with a vengeance. It’s a hard road to tread, but fashion is her passion, so she’s here back in the heartland of Melbourne's historical retail homeland Chapel St Sth Yarra.

The Melbourne designer’s eponymous denim label – known for skinny-leg, low-rise jeans – shot to cult status in the ’90s, before several turbulent years forced it into liquidation in 2011.

The Sydney-based fashion conglomerate The Apparel Group bought the business in 2012, which ultimately led to Liano’s exit from the label. Reflecting she says,

“I wasn’t expecting to be cut out of the equation,” says Liano. “I would have settled for a small percentage [of ownership], or even a job.”

She claims Her trademarks were not adequately protected, and She lost the rights to the Bettina Liano name. “What I’ve had to endure is every creative person’s nightmare – there is someone running around with my name.”

And what a name Liano is - associated with the quintessential Italian fashion family and also made famous by her sister Housewives of Melbourne’s Gina Liano - the fashionista barrister turned media star.

But for Bettina an icon in her own right, being back in her hometown with familiar faces and loyal customers, she’s excited and the designer who has dressed some of Australia’s most celebrated bums in the best fitting jeans in the business is hopeful - yes times have changed and denim is everywhere, made for every shape and size a feature of almost every range .. but right now Bettina is back .. and she and we are ready.

Deborah's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/what.ive.learnt/
Mind, Film and Publishing: https://www.mindfilmandpublishing.com/
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/what-ive-learnt/id153556330
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3TQjCspxcrSi4yw2YugxBk
Buzzsprout: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1365850