As seen online at the Sunshine Coast Daily
A popular Coast diner has unveiled a secret new boutique sure to excite fans of amazing food, wonderful service and fine threads.
When you next stop by Riba Kai, before becoming lost in your latte, take a moment to cast your eyes toward the rear of the cafe.
You will see in an instant, perfectly poised in all her finery the lovely Via Indipendenza, waiting patiently for you to take your last sip so you can stroll over to greet her.
When you step in, you will be grateful for giving yourself a few minutes to discover the treasure she beholds.
Find yourself picking through a mix of designer recycled fashion, vintage and new pieces, each lovingly selected to compliment the carefully curated collection.
From shoes to swimwear, anything you could wish for in a revolving wardrobe fills the space.
It is all colour co-ordinated of course, for ease of browsing.
Riba Kai’s director Kylie Pizzirani started Via Indipendenza almost 10 years ago, only recently moving it to The Concept space at Newspaper Place in Maroochydore.
“I wanted to go back to my design roots, which was foraging in op shops looking for fabric or cool pieces to reinvent, or to create entirely new pieces from,” Ms Pizzirani said.
She started a Facebook page and website to create an online presence when she launched.
She used them to sell vintage and beautiful pieces, but as so often happens, life got in the way, and the lovely Via Indipendenza was left to lounge for a time.
As her role grew within Riba Kai, Ms Pizzirani never stopped collecting, knowing the day would come when Via could be reintroduced to the world.
That day came not so long ago.
“Via (Dell) Indipendenza is the main shopping street in my children’s father’s hometown Bologna … so, it was the perfect name,” she said.
Ms Pizzirani said while it would be amazing for everyone to be able to afford ethical and independent designer fashion, she understood it was not always an economic possibility.
“Via offers beautiful, interesting pieces, whilst remaining sustainable in a world of fast and wear-then-reject fashion,” she said.
“I have always strongly believed that looking amazing doesn’t need to cost a fortune.
“Being diverse and independent is really empowering.
“It’s about finding beauty in the unattractive and thinking and dressing outside the box.
“I adore vintage and timeless pieces, structure texture – anything beautiful really.”
The future for Via also looks beautiful.
Ms Pizzirani talks of one day getting back on the tools to create her own pieces to hang on the rack and perhaps incorporating Riba Kai to host styling events and vintage markets.
“Who knows, even creating a space where we can support local indi and emerging labels would be wonderful’