The Birth of Chinchilla Sees Hole in Elegant Pet Wear Market Filled

At last a place to buy online, exclusive pet wear for both dogs and cats! Chinchilla epitomises everything that people feel about their beloved pets, furry, friendly, fashionable and precious. Chinchilla offer bold, elegant and refined designs, inspired by international fashion catwalk trends and their look is one that is instantly recognised because it is unique within canine fashion.

How are we lucky enough to have the Chinchilla brand in little old New Zealand? When a fashion executive gets her first dog and can’t find anything fashionable enough for her furry friend, a designer dog accessories business is born. Business partners, Erin Hassall and Jane Francis, have strong backgrounds in the fashion industry and since graduation from fashion schools, both have worked in the commercial ‘fast fashion’ sector. Originally from the South Island, they met while working together in Auckland and have since remained good friends and work colleagues in various fashion industry roles.
With significant frequent-flyer miles under her belt, and having seen on numerous occasions the amazing pet boutiques of New York, Santa Monica and Barcelona and admired stylish pets and their parents both wearing the latest fashion, Erin realised the huge gap in the market for dog accessories.

Conversely, Jane had recently been given her first-ever dog for her birthday in 2012 and was at her wits end as to where to buy fashionable dog collars and dog leads that were high quality and good enough to coordinate with her designer bag and shoes. When she shared her dilemma with Erin, it was like a blinding flash of the obvious’.  Hence, Chinchilla was born.

Chinchilla’s purpose is to bring fashionable, high quality, designer dog accessories to the New Zealand marketplace.  Almost a year of research went into the products before they were ready to launch an initial small range of designer dog (and cat) accessories, which will be ever expanding.

Complementing their Chinchilla range are products carefully selected from other international brands such as Chilewich, Paul Frank, Susan Lanci and others and this will continue to evolve. Chinchilla’s New Zealand leather dog collars, leads, leashes and harnesses are designed and manufactured in limited production runs to the highest quality standards in New Zealand from premium New Zealand leather. For more information on their products, please view their website at Chinchilla Pet Wear NZ.