April 28th, 2024
If you look up ‘wanderlust’ in the dictionary, you just might find the name Shanya Greene. For many years the designer has been an avid traveller. In the past two years alone she embarked on a nomadic journey spanning New York, Europe, Trinidad, and Bali. Her clothing brand, by SHANYA, formerly known as BagLady Basics, serves as a testament to her escapades. “When I travel I walk a lot. I want something that feels comfortable.” Even as we spoke, Shanya was somewhere else. While I looked out at the night sky in Trinidad, Shanya was perched in her Sydney apartment where the day was still new.
As the conversation progressed, one thing became clear – her journey, and by extension that of her brand, is not a simple tale of fabric and thread; it is a story of resilience, authenticity, and an unwavering commitment to exploration. She opened up about being on the threshold of evolution, settling down in mind and body, and what that might mean for her brand. “I don’t like to speak in definite terms. I don’t know what the universe has for me. I’m very open to the flow of whatever.” As she embarks on this chapter of her odyssey, one thing remains certain – her creations will remain a testament to the boundless possibilities that lie ahead.
Where are you based today?
Shanya: Sydney! I was based in Shanghai for 7 years. I left in June 2022 at which point I hadn’t been home since 2018, and hadn’t left China since the COVID outbreak in 2020. So after leaving, I headed to NY, then to Trinidad. I spent that summer travelling around Europe and eventually made my way to Bali where I spent 5 months before coming to Sydney.
Will Sydney be another shortstop?
Shanya: I’m hoping to settle down in Sydney, but time will tell, who knows what the future holds. Starting over again at this age, in this space… it’s not scary, because I’ve moved around so much but it takes patience. I know this process and I just have to be patient again.
What does it mean for you to settle down?
Shanya: In Shanghai, I was settled in a place but always wanted to be somewhere else. Now I’m settled in place and mindset. I just want to be content with where I am. I left Shanghai during the COVID lockdowns in 2022 and lived out of suitcases for almost a year after leaving. Now, I’m happy to have a home again…and a closet.
What inspired you to change the brand’s identity to by SHANYA?
Shanya: My brand has always been so intertwined with my life. BagLady Basics was birthed at a time when I began to explore the world and had so much stuff. I love my clothes and my shoes and couldn’t leave them behind. I’d travel around with my suitcases struggling to pull them along and jokingly singing Erykah Badu’s song “Bag Lady”. I was also obsessed with Mary Kate and Ashley’s oversized bag lady style. Over the years I have evolved, and my brand has grown with me. I think it’s time to celebrate a more settled side of life- in mindset and location. by SHANYA reflects this evolution, celebrating freedom, self-exploration and the eternally curious spirit. I’m proud of my creations and I’m just content with saying hey, it’s by me, Shanya!
It took inspiration from Erykah Badu as well as Mary Kate and Ashley’s oversized, draping style was called ‘bag lady’ chic. Now I’m embracing a softer, slower, more settled life, in mind and location. by SHANYA reflects this evolution, celebrating freedom, self-exploration, and the eternally curious spirit.
How does your lifestyle inform the brand?
Shanya: by SHANYA’s goal is to “Elevate your every day with essentials for the exceptional woman.” This is what I aspire for every time I exit my house. I want to feel confident to go anywhere in my clothes. I want to dress in a way that doesn’t hold me back. I want to walk in a garment that makes me feel comfortable but also looks effortlessly chic. I want to look and feel like that daily and I want my pieces to offer that feeling to anyone who wears them.
Ease and feeling good seem to be running themes. How else does this translate into the brand?
Shanya: There’s so much in life to explore and experience. Some days are great, and others not so much. I believe that getting dressed should be easy and make you feel great. I try my best for by SHANYA designs to reflect this. Designs are simple yet have unexpected elements. Also, they are made of 100% cotton, which creates a crisp and effortless look. The maxi dresses don’t drag on the floor, and they all have pockets. I also test each design by wearing it either on vacation or during my daily life and make adjustments to the designs accordingly. I try to maximize the comfort and quality level. I think about everything possible to design a garment that makes a woman feel her best- so that when she’s getting dressed, she doesn’t have to think that much. I think that one can achieve that with by SHANYA in your closet. Even if you’re having a bad day, you can say, “Oh my god, I feel great because I look great, and now I can take on the day!”
Is ease also reflected on the business end of things?
Shanya: For so long I’ve been a one-woman show. Designer, photographer, web designer, etc. At least once a month I’m like fuck this shit. I’m tired. So, yeah, I guess it’s not so easy on the business end of things. But I’ve been trying my best lately to show myself some grace and choose my battles. On the bright side, it has allowed me to connect personally with my customers. I easily use social media and my pop-up events to build customer relationships and get customer feedback in real-time. I love having this connection – it keeps me going.
As a small business, how important is sustainability to you?
Shanya: I don’t promote my brand as sustainable and I probably never will, but I do what I can to be as environmentally concious as I can. I’ve always been a bargain hunter, and many times I’d find something on sale, try it on, then realize why it was on sale. I’ve taken these learnings and applied them to my brand. I wear all my samples before making them available. I’ll take them on vacation, wear them for an entire day, and figure out what needs to change before I sell them. I don’t want any of my customers to wear any by SHANYA design and think that it is impractical. I also use quality cotton fabrics, so that the clothes can be washed and worn over and over again. by SHANYA garments are also made in small batches, which is expensive, but it means that there could be more attention, detail, and quality of making.
I also try to be as accountable as I possibly can when it comes to who makes my clothes. I think a lot of times, people think of “Made in China” as a bad thing. Maybe they think of child and forced labour and poor quality. Many times, especially for small businesses, this is not the case.
I’ve always worked with small family businesses there. The first team I worked with was a young woman and her dad. Even though we didn’t speak the same language, we got along really well. I now work with a couple in Shanghai, and when the lockdown hit China in 2022, business came to a halt. It felt great to know that giving them orders kept their business afloat during those times. Even now, while the economy there isn’t doing so well, I know that this income is making a big difference for them and it feels like we’re growing together.
What would you say is a core brand value?
Shanya: The empowerment of women through dress.
What are some of your earliest memories of fashion?
Shanya: My mum was always well-dressed but outward appearance was never her focus. She didn’t care too much about hair and makeup but she always looked nice and made sure we did too. Now, my grandma on my dad’s side, I didn’t know her that much but I’d always hear of how she loved dressing up. She was the show-stopper; she’d show up to the party late just to make an entrance. My grandma on my mum’s side would change her clothes two to three times a day! If it was raining she’d put on something bright. She had a collection of wigs and loved to wear lipstick.
For me, I’ve had an interest in fashion and clothes for as long as I could remember. There was one outfit that I felt best in as a kid and my aunts tried to convince my mom to not let me wear it, but she did anyway. The outfit was ridiculous, it didn’t match. It was wide-legged floral cotton pants, a white tank top and a crotchet orange vest top over it. I felt free. Freedom was always important. Freedom to be, freedom of expression, freedom to wear whatever, wherever. It’s why my clothes are loose and versatile.
I used to dress like a boy at one point. I was a tomboy with Barbie dolls. I’d take all my cousin’s T-shirts and baggy jeans and wear them with bandanas and matching sneakers. Sometimes I’d have my mum help me make baggy jeans for my dolls. That inspired my brand when I just began because the first two items were oversized t-shirt dresses. All of my designs are clothes that I want in my closet. Selfishly. People seem to like it though.
While COVID-19 is in the rear-view mirror for most of the world, we can still feel some of its effects. You spoke about how it affected businesses in China. How did it affect you?
Shanya: I have always been a mindful person. It’s a blessing and a curse. I struggled with anxiety for as long as I could remember. I just didn’t know what it was called until a couple years ago when mental health started to become a less taboo topic. During COVID my anxiety got worse and I finally went to the doctor to get help. I was already in therapy but it didn’t seem to help much with all that was happening, so another one of my doctors prescribed me medication that changed my life. My headaches became almost non-existent and I could finally get a good night’s sleep. My nervous breakdowns became less and less until they went away. My overall mental and physical health improved and I felt energized and more motivated to make positive changes in my life. It made me wonder how different life might have been if I had been on medication earlier. I’m not a health nut but I’m careful about what I put in my body and while the medication was working, I felt there had to be a more holistic way to treat it.
I had tried meditation on my own but it never really helped because my mind was always really busy. When I went to Bali and spent time in Ubud, it opened me up to various ways of meditation and healing. It also felt so great to be in a community where you were allowed to be vulnerable. I discovered, uncovered, and released a lot while in Bali in various ways. It was not an easy process, but so worth it! Most importantly, I discovered that I have the power to heal myself and not live with anxiety.
And now?
Shanya: I feel like I’ve just decided to be in a soft girl situation. Every day I’ll do some form of meditation or self-care practice. I am more aware of my body – how it can store stress and how to let go of it. It is also important for me to take moments in the day to practice gratitude. To take a moment to appreciate what is right in front of me. Something about this season feels like a breath of fresh air. I’m taking a lot of time to care for myself. Lots of exercise, nature and beach runs.
What advice might you give to a stressed-out designer?
Shanya: If I have to give one piece of advice it would be to take care of yourself – mind and body. Once you have your health – mental and physical, you can figure everything else out. Those are the basics. If you take care of those two, life is unlimited.
In light of these positive internal shifts, what does that mean for your brand?
Shanya: My brand is a part of me – a reflection of my life, and it has evolved as I have over the years. It will continue to do so. I do not know what the future holds, so I’m just taking it one step at a time.
Can you share any plans for the brand’s next step?
Shanya: I think I’m at a more settled point in my life, so I would like to be more organised. I have, up to this point, operated in this kind of nomadic mindset. There is no by SHANYA studio, just my ideas, a sketch pad, a pencil, sharpener, eraser, and fabric samples. It’s a strange arrangement for a brand owner, but it has been a natural result of my moving from place to place. It has worked before, but I see something more for the future.
Will travel continue to be on the cards?
Shanya: Travel has been very therapeutic for me. One of my favourite memories is when I first landed in China. We drove down this road with farmland on both sides, but it was harvest season so everything was gone and there was this vast sunset in front of me, as vast as you can possibly think. My driver only spoke Chinese while I only spoke English and we were bonding over music, looking at this sunset. That made me so excited about life. I think that was the beginning of my therapeutic journey- travel. It makes me so grateful for what I have and it opens up your mind to what you can be. So yes, travel will always be a big part of my life’s journey.
Interviewer: Amalda Quong Sing | Photographer: Shemariah
