Interview with Brooke Rudzis, Founder and Director of Sunday Minx, about the Story of Australian Designed Contemporary Bathroom Towels

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by Beren Dere

Sunday Minx is a Sydney based towel brand that founded in 2015. Sunday Minx founder Brooke Rudzis left her professional career behind and followed her dreams. She aims to touch our bathrooms and replace plain-coloured towels with bold coloured and contemporary patterned towels to create stylish bathrooms. In order to learn more about this journey, I asked Brooke Rudzis about the details.

Sunday Minx - Brooke Rudzis

Brooke, please tell us about your background and design experience.

My career background is in media and advertising rather than design. I have a degree in Marketing and Communications and worked in the media landscape at a major international publisher for 10 years. I loved my role and my team, however, spent more time crunching numbers and writing reports than I did expressing my creative side.

I've always had a love of interiors, bold colours and expressing my personality through our home or my fashion. Whilst balancing a demanding management role, I enrolled in an Interior Design Diploma and rediscovered my creativity and passion for design. The desire to start my own business became too intense to ignore so I farewelled media and started the journey to create Sunday Minx. I have never looked back!

Sunday Minx - Deco District Full Collection

Could you tell us about Sunday Minx?

Sunday Minx designs bath towels that feel as good as they look!

I wanted to create a product that would challenge the norm of traditional, plain-coloured towels, by introducing bold colours and contemporary patterns to stylish bathrooms.

We have two major focuses in all that we do - exceptional quality and cheeky design. I worked incredibly hard to source materials that would stand the test of time and deliver daily luxury whilst also enhancing the colourful, fun and vibrant towel designs that I create.

I'm often asked where the name Sunday Minx came from. It was the creation of two juxtaposing moods/attitudes that I continue to use to characterise the brand.

Firstly ... Sunday. To me Sunday is a day of reflection, of selfishness, hibernating and doing things that make you smile. It gives us a day to recharge and re-balance. It reflects wholesomeness and quality.

Then there's the Minx! A minx is defined as someone who has unusual seductive powers, such that she could commit acts that would otherwise be considered inappropriate, while still maintaining an air of class or poise. I love this! It is cheeky, sophisticated and disruptive all in one!

And so ... Sunday Minx was born. It is the fusion of two moods that will challenge and excite the creation of my brand essence.

What inspired you to create Sunday Minx brand? and Why towels?

I think Bath Towels are an underestimated luxury in our daily lives. We use them EVERYDAY, often more than once so I believe we should invest in a quality product that allows us to indulge.

Having a shower or bath is such a personal and rewarding daily ritual. It can sometimes be the rare occasion that is quiet and uninterrupted in our day allowing us to take a deep breath and relax. Wrapping yourself in a beautiful quality Bath Towel after a shower allows that moment of bliss to continue. Our towels are designed to give you a daily indulgence!

Sunday Minx - Deco District Collection

What are the features of Sunday Minx towels?

I'm really proud of our product and regularly receive feedback from our customers about how much they love them. I put this down to three key features that we worked really hard to achieve:

1. Softness - our towels are amazingly soft and get softer with every wash. This is thanks to using 100% Turkish Cotton - a natural fibre that is known for its beautiful soft touch.

2. Design - People like unique products that tell a story and stand out in the crowd. Our research told us that most people renovate bathrooms in neutral colours - white, cream and grey - to achieve longevity. Adding a vibrant splash of colour and pattern to their bathroom via their luxurious Bath Towel is an inexpensive way to add some wow factor to your bathroom. Gone are the days of boring, plain coloured towels.

3. Absorbency - no one wants a towel that doesn't actually dry you! Again, thanks to the properties of Turkish Cotton our Bath Towels are also highly functional with excellent absorbency that wipes water from your skin effortlessly.

Sunday Minx - Breakwater

Why did you decide to use Turkish Cotton for your luxury bath towels?

I researched many types of cotton and travelled to trade shows around the world to sample cotton variations.

Turkish Cotton was a stand out winner the moment I touched it. It delivered both aesthetically and functionally. Turkish Cotton towels are luxuriously soft and thick - they feel really incredible on your skin. However, they also do their job. Turkish Cotton is highly absorbent (important for a towel!) and fast drying. Although thick and fluffy, the cotton fibres dry quickly meaning no dampness or musty smells in your bathroom.

It ticked all the boxes for me!

Which features of your towels makes Sunday Minx unique and different from competitors?

In Australia, a lot of Bath Towels are manufactured in China or India due to their closer proximity and competitive pricing. Sunday Minx made the decision to work with a Turkish manufacturer so we could use Turkish Cotton. This is a significant unique selling point and customers often comment on their love of our product being ‘Australian Designed and European Made'.

Patterned Bath Towels are starting to be introduced by more brands which I find a refreshing design change! Daring to create towels that weren't a single, plain colour was initially a unique characteristic, however, consumers are starting to embrace colour and pattern more and want products that challenge the norm. This makes me so excited!

Sunday Minx - Webster

How many different types of towels and designs do you offer? How often do you change your collections?

We have launched 2 collections within 3 years which I am really proud of.

Each collection has featured 3 colourways in both Bath Towels and Hand Towels. Our most recent collection also included Bath Mats which really compliments the range available allowing customers to purchase wall to floor style!

Our goal is to do a new collection every year bringing new colours and trends to stylish bathrooms. We are a small, growing business so we have to work within the parameters (and budgets!) that we have.

Could you tell us about your team?

We are a small yet highly efficient family run business. I run the day to day happenings and work with my husband on the long term goals and strategies. When order volumes are busy we have additional help to call upon to ensure our towels are ready for courier pick up within 24hours. I think I could win a gold medal for how quickly I can gift wrap an order!

I've also learnt to outsource certain parts of the business to professionals who are experts in their field. Social media, photography, PR and website enhancements all sit in this domain and have not only allowed me to manage my time, but have seen great gains thanks to their focus and knowledge on a specific topic.

Social media has become part of our life. How do you use social media for Sunday Minx? How can our readers follow you?

Social Media plays a significant role in the promotion of Sunday Minx and showing people what our brand is all about. Our Instagram account (@Sunday_minx) is a celebration of colour and fun where we share many styled images of our beautiful Bath Towels, plus inspirational bathroom spaces, reminders to relax and moments of joy. I particularly love when customers share with us pictures of their own bathrooms featuring their new towels - it is always a pleasure to see our towels in their new homes!

You can also follow Sunday Minx on Facebook (www.facebook.com/SundayMinx/) and we are starting to get more involved with Pinterest too!

Sunday Minx - McAlpin

Where can our readers buy Sunday Minx towels?

Our website www.sundayminx.com.au is our online store showcasing our range of products and designs. We currently ship within Australia and New Zealand, however, are working on global shipping options. If any international customers would love to have our towels in their bathroom, please email us at hello@sundayminx.com.au and we will do our best to organise special delivery to you!

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What are your local and international growth plans for the future?

We have tested the market in both the USA and Europe via large online event websites to gauge interest of our products and designs - which have been met with great enthusiasm! We would love to work with homewares stores or department stores who share our design philosophy and passion and would like to become stockists of our beautiful products. We want as many people as possible to enjoy the sensation of wrapping themselves in luxury and experiencing a daily indulgence with Sunday Minx.

Thank you Brooke.

For more information, please visit website of Sunday Minx

This interview was conducted in a Question-and-Answer format. The answers were checked for grammar and punctuation and published without any additional editing. Tuesday, July 3, 2018. All photos are the property of their respective owners.