With so many incredible local businesses on the Gold Coast, one begins to wonder: how did they all come to be? In our series, ‘The story behind…’, we chat with local founders and owners about how their business started, their biggest learnings and their tips for other self-starters.
This time, we caught up with Brooke Terry, the owner and chief creative officer at Renew Bohemian.
Where did the idea for your business come from? What was the lightbulb moment?
While travelling around Australia with my family I was selling vintage kantha blankets for some extra funds as we went. I met a woman in a teeny town in Tasmania making herself a kimono with the kantha blankets she was buying from me. I remember thinking, that’s it! I knew exactly what I wanted to do.
That was really the beginning of Renew Bohemian as it is today.
Where did you start?
Where did you start? I started Renew in 2008 as a one-woman vintage clothing business. In those early years it was very much me doing absolutely everything! Sourcing, mending, photographing, marketing, packing orders… you name it.
I was based in Sydney at the time, and a lot of the business was built through markets as well as online. I’ve always had a real love for clothing from the late 60s and 70s, particularly pieces with beautiful fabrics, interesting prints and a bit of a story to them. Absolutely cannot get enough of Indian textiles. It’s always been love!
After about a decade of growing the business, I took a two-year pause to travel around Australia with my family. Having that space gave me time to think about what I really wanted the business to become. I wanted to move towards creating my own styles, but I didn’t want to follow the fast-fashion model of constantly generating more and more clothing and subscribing to trends. I wanted to work with these textiles that already exist and give them another life.
That’s where Renew Bohemian really began to take shape.
Today we’re nestled alongside the rainforest on Tamborine Mountain, with a dedicated team here in Australia, and incredible production partners in India who have become such an important part of who we are.
What was the first big obstacle you faced, and how did you overcome it?
Finding the right production partners in India took a while. Everyone works differently and standards can vary enormously, so there was definitely a lot of trial and error in the beginning.
I always had a really strong vision for what I wanted to create, the quality I wanted each garment to have and, probably most importantly, the kind of team I wanted to work with long-term.
Eventually I found the two women who have grown alongside me as I’ve built Renew. We’ve worked really hard over the years to communicate well, refine our processes and make sure everyone feels good about what we’re creating and why we’re doing it.
It’s still an ongoing project. We’re always looking at how we can make things better. But honestly, I couldn’t imagine partnering with anyone else now, they’re like family to me.
What’s one thing you know now that you wish you’d known from day one?
How hard it would be to wear so many hats! Especially when it comes to social media. I really don’t like being online, which is probably a little ironic considering I somehow ended up in a job where my face is on the internet every day!
Hiring help with social media has been pivotal in the rapid growth of the business over the last couple of years, and bringing people into the team who can support me in different areas has been such a relief.
I’m still getting used to the feeling of being able to hand something over and just trust that someone else will get it done. It’s actually quite nice!
Tell us about the moment things started taking off, or when you realised you’d ‘made it’.
I still don’t really know if I feel like I’ve “made it”. I think there is always another thing to work towards when you run a small business!
But 2024 was a pretty big turning point for me. I hired my first employee, and at the same time moved everything out of my basement and into a proper studio space.
I’d finally got the business to a point where I was paying myself a proper wage, and then I took a big leap and invested that money back into growing the business. Thankfully, it really paid off.
It was a funny feeling after so many years of doing everything myself. Suddenly there were other people around me who actually cared about Renew and wanted to help build it too.
What does a working day in your life look like?
I’m a mum of two teenagers, so my day usually starts with getting them out the door before I head into the office. Then it’s coffee and checking in on our socials.
Our days are pretty varied actually, we’re always working on something, whether that’s planning an in-person event or photoshoot, jumping on a Facebook Live in our community group to share updates and sneak peeks, or shooting content for the month ahead.
We’re a close-knit team and we always have a good time. There’s usually plenty of chatting, snacking and playing dress-ups alongside the actual work!
These days I’m less involved in the day-to-day operations like shipping and product photography and more in the background keeping things moving, designing new pieces, handling deliveries from India, working on ways to improve our processes, etc.
What do you love about the Gold Coast community, especially as a business owner?
I’m not going to lie, I love to travel and I love the sun! And I think the Gold Coast has a real sense of that adventurous spirit that I feel in my bones.
From a business perspective, I’ve always appreciated how supportive other small business owners are. I really got to experience that first-hand when I was starting out at markets.
No one quite understands the experience like another passionate small business owner who is right there in the trenches beside you. There is something really special about being able to cheer each other on, share ideas and understand the highs and lows without having to explain it all.
So, where to next? What are you working towards?
On a practical level, we’ve outgrown our office space already and have been looking for something bigger for a while now. We’re manifesting the perfect place here on the Mountain!
But the really exciting thing happening right now is our very first in-person pop-up shop, the Renew Bohemian Bazaar.
Since we stopped doing markets a few years ago, there hasn’t really been a way for people to experience our clothes in person. It’s something we get asked about all the time, so I’m incredibly excited to finally open the doors and invite people into our colourful world.
The Bazaar is happening here on Tamborine Mountain over two weekends in September. People can come and try things on, meet the team, ask questions and really experience the fabrics in real life. We’ll also have special pieces that won’t be going online, along with some unreleased styles.
We’re having a special opening event on the first Saturday too, with gifts from some incredible local businesses, free henna tattoos, drinks and nibbles. After so many years of building Renew online, I’m really looking forward to meeting more of the people who have supported us along the way. The Bazaar will be open from September 18 to 20 and September 25 to 27 at 92-94 Main Western Rd, Tamborine Mountain.
What is one thing you’d tell someone about to start a business on the Gold Coast?
Accept help and connect with other business owners. It really is true that a rising tide lifts all ships. I believe that by collaborating with each other, we can all succeed together.
Running a business can be incredibly isolating sometimes, and it’s so much easier when you have friends and team members to bounce things off, or even just people to share the hard moments with.
I’m incredibly grateful for all the wonderful friends I’ve made through business over the years, but also for our widespread Renew community and the way they show up for us every single day.
I really couldn’t imagine having a better, more supportive group of customers on our side.
