BAINA
'THIS IS NICE’ SPEAKS WITH BAILEY MEREDITH AND ANNA FAHEY, FOUNDERS OF BAINA, ABOUT THEIR MOST RECENT COLLECTION UNDERWOOD
‘This is nice’: Thank you for taking the time to speak to us about your newest collection, Underwood. Can you start by giving us a little background on BAINA and how the brand came to be?
BAINA: First and foremost we are two friends, who had a vision to create a company and work environment which allows us to design, build a team, and create products we could be proud of. We have dreamt for years about doing something together, as we both come from fashion backgrounds so assumed this would be where we’d land. But after a little burn out, and sometime learning the ropes of the Australian design industry, we decided it was time to apply our years of knowledge in fashion to something that was a little gentler on the planet. Towelling is seasonless, it's not gender specific, and it's for anyone and everyone. It’s also authentically us, we both share a love of bathing, and felt we could confidently speak to its benefits.
‘Tin’: This collection, Underwood, was named after the oldest public swimming complex in America- which actually isn’t too far from where I grew up in Massachusetts. How did you hear about this place and what made you choose it as the final name for the collection?
BAINA: I would love to say we travelled there and fell in love with the complex, but given the times of covid, we turned to the web. America is a new market for us, and this name “Underwood” felt so suited to the collection, it was rooted in history as the oldest complex, but the name itself gave dark, tonal, and grounded in earth, the Moss colour felt as though it belonged in the Underwood collection.
‘TIN’: BAINA has become known for not only the quality of products but colours and printS, most notably the orange and greens. Do you have plans for other statement colours in future collections?
BAINA: In short, yes, we design well in advance of launches, every design feels new and purposeful. We would hate to give too much away, but this summer sees us with a bold new statement piece, which is very new, but very BAINA. You’ll see.
FAST FAVOURITES
‘TIN’: Place?
BAINA: The bath
‘TIN’: Song?
BAINA: SZA - Good Days
‘TIN’: Colour?
BAINA: Tabac
‘TIN’: Collection you’ve designed?
BAINA: Underwood, forever classic.
‘TIN’: Muse?
BAINA: Georgah Crane – our first ever BAINA model, and friend.
‘TIN’: Australian designer?
BAINA: Olivia Bossy – Product and Interiors
‘TIN’: International designer?
BAINA: Jil Sander
‘TIN’: Way to celebrate?
BAINA: A bottle of Chardonnay at Marion, in Melbourne
‘TIN’: Piece of advice?
BAINA: Be authentic, don’t look too closely at what others are achieving.
‘TIN’: Quote?
BAINA: “Be like water, which is fluid & soft & yielding, as in time, water will overcome rock which is rigid & hard. Therefore, what is soft is strong.” ― Anonymous
A piece by Olivia Bossy, BAINA co-founders favourite Australian designer
Where you will find BAINA co-founders celebrating, Marion in Melbourne
‘Tin’: I always reach for my BAINA towel before any others that I own, it’s by far the best quality, most stylist, and actually dries me off after a shower- which really should be a standard requirement for towels but you’d be surprised how disappointing some are. Selfishly, I have to ask, would you consider designing anything in addition to towels in the future? Robes perhaps?
BAINA: We can’t give all of our secrets away, but we strongly believe in doing one thing well..
‘tin’: Finally, what’s next for BAINA? Do you have any exciting projects or collections coming up?
BAINA: We are working on some great collaborations. One that is launching late May, without naming which brand we are paired with, I can say it is skincare, and that there is an incredibly strong synergy with us. We are excited to share this very soon.
You can shop BAINA’S NEWEST COLLECTION, UNDERWOOD HERE