Celebrity endorsements mean big bucks in the fashion world. When it comes to the world of dog fashion, turns out it’s no different.
New Zealander knitwear designer Catherine Young has been getting lots of attention – and orders – since supermodels Cindy Crawford, Elle Macpherson, and Gail Elliott have been raving about her line of handmade wool sweaters for dogs.
“I’m absolutely rapt with our celebrity endorsements,” Young says in an interview with Stuff magazine. “Over the last four months we’ve just grown and grown. Suffice to say we need more knitters.”
Young says she launched her line, Sparkles the Dog, in December when her Bichon Frise-Miniature Poodle mix, Sparkles, refused to wear sweaters made from synthetic fabric.
Young, who had studied fashion before launching a career in finance, says it was the push she needed to follow her heart and start a fashion business.
Now that celebrities have discovered Young’s designs, it looks like her company is here to stay. Macpherson, who lives in the U.K., says her Labrador Retriever-Poodle mix Bella “looks like a cozy sheep” in her new wool sweater, and Crawford says her dog Sugar has a cable knit sweater that’s perfect for Malibu, according to the celebs’ handwritten notes posted on Young’s website.
The line ranges in price from $90 to $130. To learn more, visit www.sparklesthedog.com.