Irish Design Spotlight: Urban Aran

Tell us about you and your brand
Urban Aran is a contemporary Irish knitwear brand. My influences come from street art, particularly in my home city of Waterford where professional murals decorate old city walls in a very positive way using colour, stencil and free hand embellishment. It is very inspiring. My inspiration is drawn from urban towns, villages and cities nationally and how they have emerged through their provocative use of colour, telling dynamic stories and providing free art galleries on our doorsteps. I visited the Saatchi Gallery’s ‘Beyond The Streets’ exhibition recently and read a line that said. “Graffiti is not vandalism, it is a beautiful crime.”

What is your mission?
Urban Aran offers a distinctive design approach, our aim is to create sophisticated, dynamic but considered knitwear using only natural luxury wool sourced ethically that will last for many years. They’re investment and unique pieces.

Did you always know you wanted to be a designer?
I worked in the luxury hotel industry for over 20 years before creating Urban Aran having studied a flexible course in Limerick College of Art and Design. I was hooked!

What kind of items do you stock?
Pure fine Merino that is cruelty-free and free of harmful chemical dyes. My collection includes innovative jacquard knitwear most of which is fully fashioned, including creative use of 3D knitwear technology in its production. Wool is recyclable, biodegradable and renewable. It is gentle on your skin and regulates your body temperature. It needs little washing.

What new brands or items are on your radar?
I love knitwear by Gabrielle Hearst including her thought-provoking environmental storytelling through her pieces.
I respect Missoni’s distinctive design theme. I like the fun factor of Bathing Ape, the innovation and colour use of Dries Von Noten and Vivienne Westwood’s use of jacquards and pure genius creatively. I’m also watching the rise of UK brand AGR and admire the talent of Alicia Robinson. Closer to home, I love the commitment of CIFD designers, it is a total challenge to be in this industry, so I have so much respect for my colleagues in my industry.

Was money/funding a concern when starting out?
Massively – it still is! Manufacturing and production is a small industry in Ireland. I am lucky to work with an amazing Irish production team.

Best business advice you’ve gotten
Treat fashion like a business, know every inch of every cost and forecast with an accurate business plan with realistic goals.

Favourite fashion/design accounts you follow
Wool and the Gang, Thenongrak, The Knitter, Le Pull Le Pull, Acne Studios, Khaite, Alanui.

Best fashion purchase
A Gabrielle Hearst hand-knit cardigan at the end of sale. I got lucky.

Other Irish brands you love
I admire Hope Macauley and Inis Meain as well as artists Shane O’Dricsoll, Duda and Waterford-based Criostal na Rinne

Most useful learning since setting up a business
Ask for help from your local Local Enterprise Office constantly (Waterford LEO is amazing) and join networks. It can be very isolating starting out, which I was not prepared for.

Proudest moment so far
Winning an award for Emerging Knitwear Designer with the Design and Craft Council in 2022. Being chosen as one of 27 Designers for CREATE Brown Thomas in 2022, showing my collection in aid of ARC Cancer Support in the RDS for the past two years.

I want my brand to be remembered for… being authentic and unique. My design theme is very much my own interpretation of colours on buildings, old doorways, brick and grout and seeing their natural beauty. I want Urban Aran to be remembered for fusing originality, Irish heritage colour and natural beautiful wool in a contemporary way.

If I could have anyone wear my designs it would be… Harry Styles, Ed Sheeran or Brad Pitt who has been wearing interesting colourful knitwear lately. Men and fashion have transformed into something very exciting. Róisín Murphy wore one of my cardigans not long ago and I was thrilled, she has amazing style. I’d also love to see Barry Keoghan in one of my designs.

Imagery via Urban Aran