Coffee with Neometro

As autumn sets in the mornings are getting crisper and the days shorter, but there’s still plenty going on at Neometro.

We’re pleased to announce that we’ve had an overwhelmingly positive response to Forty One Darling Street and both of the beautiful town residences have now been sold. We have further properties in the area available. For more information please call Ben Khong on 0401 78 32 32 or email ben@neometro.com.au.

For those who didn’t have the opportunity to come through Forty One Darling, we invite you to come and experience our work – the residence is open for inspection Monday to Saturday 3-4pm, or by appointment.

In other news for our April newsletter, we had coffee with Huw Bennett from menswear label Vanishing Elephant. The label has just opened its first flagship store in Melbourne’s QV and is about to release its first womenswear collection.

We also checked out Jacqui Stockdale's new exhibition, The Quiet Wild, at the Helen Gory Galerie and popped in to visit Hanoi Hannah, a new eatery in Windsor serving up authentic, hawker-style Vietnamese street food.

See you soon.

Sincerely,

James Tutton, Jeff Provan and Neil McLennan

Neometro.com.au

Neometro has coffee with Huw Bennett

Since its inauguration in 2008, Vanishing Elephant has quickly established a reputation for providing quality menswear with a distinct, gentlemanly style.We met with designer Huw Bennett for a coffee and a chat on a glorious autumn morning.

Over a couple of flat whites, he spoke about his new Melbourne flagship store and designing for the fairer sex.

You opened your first store six months ago. How are you finding that?

It’s fantastic. It’s really good to have that direct contact and interaction with our customers. That’s probably the most important thing. Second to that, it’s a good way for us to test product.

Vanishing Elephant is Sydney-based but you opened your first store in Melbourne. What was the thinking behind that and are you planning to open another store in Sydney?

It was just a happy accident really. We were looking in both cities but we found a place in Melbourne. We’re very keen to open a store in Sydney, but the reality of the situation is that it will take a lot of attention. There’s no rush.

The QV store is beautifully designed. What was the concept behind the fit-out?

The idea behind the store was that it should be a warm and welcoming place. We pictured people out shopping in Melbourne in winter and stepping out of one of the cold laneways and into a warm place where they could spend a bit of time. We’ve always been of the opinion that our clothes are very classical and we want them to sort of speak for themselves. We didn’t want a shop that looks overbearing. We just wanted a warm space where you could come in and appreciate the design and the clothes.

We’re very excited about the new VE womenswear collection. What inspired you to start designing for the fairer sex?

It’s probably a collection of little things. We definitely wanted a new challenge, it was something that we felt was missing in our design scope and in terms of progressing the business we wanted to have a go at it. We’re trying not to overcomplicate it; we’re taking it as it comes. We design, we build and what will be will be.

QV, Shop 14, Albert Coates Lane, Melbourne


(03) 9639 3869

vanishingelephant.com

The Quiet Wild by Jacqui Stockdale

Artist Jacqui Stockdale's new body of work The Quiet Wild is now showing at the Helen Gory Galerie. Featuring a series of alluringly uncanny photographs, Stockdale frames mask-holding, painted models in expertly hand-painted backdrops.

Reminding us of colonial postcards reflecting a John Glover aesthetic, the images are infused with a nostalgic quality. And yet, all are executed in high-definition, where each stroke of paint stands as obvious as the contemporary nature of Stockdale's staged portraiture.

The Quiet Wild is showing now until May 19 at the Helen Gory Galerie.

helengory.com
jacquistockdale.com

HANOI HANNAH

Bringing authentic, hawker-style food to Melbourne’s southeast, Hanoi Hannah is serving up fresh and affordable Vietnamese food.

Rather than blending Asian cuisines, Hanoi Hannah’s menu is made up entirely of traditional Vietnamese street-eats, albeit offering a few modern twists like pork belly sliders. Standout options include the crispy betel leaf cigars and DIY kingfish rice paper rolls.

Washed down with a lychee and lemongrass caipiroska or a jug of white wine sangria, Hanoi Hannah is already proving to be a bustling, local hot spot.

180 High Street, Prahran                                                          (03) 9939 5181

hanoihannah.com.au