Nicky Zimmermann Talks Inspiration, Prep and 'Pinch Me' Moments Ahead Of NYFW

We sat down with Nicky Zimmermann ahead of their New York Fashion Week show on September 11.

They're one of our biggest Aussie success stories, with 22 stores worldwide, a slew of celebrity devotees, and on September 11, ZIMMERMANN will present their fifth collection at New York Fashion Week.

We chatted to designer, Nicky Zimmermann about how she preps for a show after all these years, what we can expect from the show and her biggest ever 'pinch me' moment.

What was your inspiration behind this collection?
I was inspired by Ethel Turner’s book, Seven Little Australians. As much as anything I drew on the contrast between the conservatism of the time and the waywardness of the children as they grew up in bushland of Sydney.

RELATED: Zimmermann New York Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2015 Runway

Nicky and Simone Zimmermann with Miranda Kerr at the opening of the ZIMMERMANN Melrose Place Flagship Store in July. Photo: Getty Images

What can we expect from the show?
We’ve worked with linen, cotton organdy, raw silks, embroideries, lace and various natural textures. Of themselves they’re quite feminine and of an older time, but we have worked them into sharper shapes in a more modern context.

Has your prep/lead up to this show been any different or do you find you have a fairly set routine these days?
It’s become fairly routine but there’s always something that comes up in the lead up that throws a spanner in the works. We arrive in New York around a week before the show, and set up in a temporary studio that we use each season. We then do all our casting, fittings and alterations from there. It’s controlled chaos.

You have achieved so much success with Zimmermann over the years, but what has personally been the biggest ‘pinch me’ moment?
I have lots of times when I think about how lucky I am to be doing what I love. I’ve only ever wanted to design so it’s pretty great really to be able to do go into the studio each day and work on collections.

In terms of specific moments though, I loved seeing our new LA store which opened on Melrose Place in July – it was a really nice feeling to see our vision for the brand all come together in an amazing store space.

RELATED: Zimmermann Summer Swim 2015 Campaign

Zimmermann Summer Swim 2015 Campaign

What’s the best advice you would give young Aussie designers starting out?
You need to find your own creative vision and build on it over time. Staying really true to yourself and what you love to design is really important.