Why Everyone Wants To Be A Hunza G Girl
The vintage-inspired swimwear brand is a vacation essential for fashion insiders. Here, founder and creative director Georgiana Huddart talks inclusivity, sustainability and instilling confidence in the women who wear her designs. By GEORGIE LUCAS
“Everyone’s invited to the Hunza G party,” says Georgiana Huddart, founder and creative director of the London-based swimwear company, which she relaunched a decade ago with “just me and an Instagram account”. Hunza G is a revival of Hunza, the 1980s brand that created that blue-and-white dress worn by Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. In 2015, Huddart took the bones of the label, added the ‘G’, and set about modernizing it. “I aimed to create a diverse, inclusive, aspirational swimwear brand that felt more fashion-led than what existed back then,” she explains. In the 10 years since being relaunched, Hunza G has gone from strength to strength. Rihanna, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Gisele were all early adopters, helping catapult the brand to global recognition. Its USP is the much-loved crinkle fabric – stretchy and tactile, it simultaneously skims and supports. “It performs an amazing job on the body,” says Huddart. “It really holds you in and makes you feel confident while looking stylish.”
Inclusivity is at the heart of Hunza G, underpinning the way the brand has operated from the beginning. “It’s a word thrown around so much now, but in 2015 it wasn’t,” says Huddart. “For me, it was literal; why would we not want as many different women to be able to buy into this brand, this product?” The brand listens to the women who wear their designs. “Our coverage collection came from a wedding [I attended] where some mothers asked if we could have more fabric in the body of pieces,” explains Huddart, “for women who didn’t want the big cut or who needed more support.”
“I aimed to create a diverse, inclusive, aspirational swimwear brand that felt more fashion-led than what existed back then
”Georgiana Huddart
Alongside inclusivity, sustainability is a major Hunza G tenet – many of the styles are included in our NET SUSTAIN edit of consciously crafted designs. “[It] was a huge focus for us right from the start,” explains Huddart. “We try to produce it in the best way possible, taking time and investing money [in processes].” Originally, collections were offered via a made-to-order model, with leftover fabric used to make hair scrunchies and other accessories. Today, Hunza G’s ‘one size’ philosophy minimizes surplus stock and wastage, the factories are audited regularly, and the brand’s fabric producer “re-uses all of the water in the knitting and dyeing process, so it’s a circular [process],” says Huddart.
The creative director cites “travel, new imagery, referencing old imagery, history of art, architecture and music” as major sources of inspiration, melded together to form the “360-degree world that feels like a moment”, which she has created with Hunza G. And Huddart herself is an embodiment of the women she designs for. “For one-pieces, I’ve always been a ‘Pamela’ girl,” she says, referencing the brand’s classic swimsuit with slim straps. “I would wear that with our black UPF sarong as an outfit, with black ballet pumps, on holiday – or the new ‘Dallas’, with the zip at the front, to be worn with little denim shorts.” And what about a bikini? “I love a ‘Tyler’,” she says, referring to a sporty style with contrast binding, “worn with our white shirt over the top and a pair of loose jeans or trousers.” Now, all you need to do is book that vacation…
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