ANGIE Varnam’s life has been filled with fashion, photography and fun.
In her younger years she developed a love of photography and from her dark room at home she produced incredible photos of rock and roll stars as she travelled the country covering all the big festivals.
“I was privileged getting to meet and hang with some amazing bands and artists,” she recalled.
Angie moved to London in 2000 for ten years where she began dabbling in vintage fashion which led her to dressing iconic bands of the late 90s.
“I styled Florence Welsh, Tom York of Radiohead and drank with Amy Winehouse on the weekends,” she revealed.
“It was a surreal experience, but incredibly important in how it shaped my creative side.
“In London, I landed a role with the largest vintage clothing company in the UK. That’s where I really learnt the trade and the nuts and bolts of the vintage game.
“I was fortunate to be there when there were new genres emerging; the birth of new wave and grime.”
In 2011 Angie returned to Australia and opened her first retail store, Akive Vintage, in 2012 in Surfers Paradise, which expanded to four retail locations.
“It was lots and lots of hard work,” she said.
Finding herself a single mum of two boys while running a large business became too much so she closed all but one of the stores at Westfield Chermside and now focuses on wholesale and online orders.
The volume of clothes she imports is mind boggling – 60,000 kilograms coming this year in five containers, from rag yards mostly in the United States.
Angie specialises in grading items, based on aspects such as their label, shape and quality.
She admits that grading the clothes at the rate she does – 500kg a day – doesn’t stop her finding lots of precious things to tuck away in her own wardrobe.
While her personal style is always evolving, she said mixing designer, with vintage and high street is the key to pulling something off successfully.
In 2021 she met fiancé Pete Neville, at the café he used to own on the mountain. However, they later discovered their paths had crossed back in the 90s when he was playing in bands Angie was photographing.
Pete has now given up his job as a teacher to join her in business.
“I’ve been able to get back to styling and working on the creative aspects of owning the business,” Angie said.
She is also in the position of being able to pick and choose who she styles and continues to work with some amazing musicians on the mountain, including Blind Corners.
Angie’s relationship with the mountain began as a child when her mum came here to see acupuncturist Peter Crook in the 80s.
Soon after returning from London, she found herself drawn back and in 2012 relocated.
“We had the choice of buying on the Gold Coast or here. The arts community here felt more aligned to what I was aligned with,” she explained.
“After living in a cosmopolitan city like London I was due for a tree change. The community, arts and nature were the drawcards.”
In her spare time, she’s a regular attendee at the Creative Arts Studio where she enjoys pottery.
Angie also DJs as a hobby and has an extensive record collection and as a side project, together with Pete, she runs Groovenote, a music promotion company.
In November the couple will tie the knot at St Bernards Hotel and her goal in the meantime is to slow down.
