Our Story
Our Story
Sophia and Pilar, which means Wisdom and Strength, sprang from a mutual long held passion for fashion and a desire to help other women. We believe in the innate dignity of every person and the feminine genius of women.
Meet Gemma
“So, what was Mum like when she was a kid?” The question hung in the air and then my old amah responded:
“Her big sister always had her nose in a book, her middle sister liked to cook and your mother always asked me: “What colour ribbon should I have in my hair today?”
My kids burst out laughing because nothing had changed.
Swirl forward several years when a friend asked “What would you like to do?”. We were sitting beside the pool and I replied: “Design dresses for women”.
And so from there, Sophia and Pilar was born. But it wasn’t instantaneous.
A bitter-sweet journey that saw me re-train, learn a whole new level of patience and overcome unpredictable challenges.
Not wanting to do this on my own, I searched for someone with a good fashion eye and complementary skills, who shared my love of colour and fashion and style, and strong desire to help other women, and my friend, Bona, came into view.
We know as mummas and grand-mummas how busy life can be and how much women need timeless, elegant dresses in their wardrobe which they can call on for any occasion. This is key in the designs for Sophia and Pilar. The other key is combining knowledge from my initial professional training in colour and style as an Image Consultant, so that we can offer great colours as well as flattering, go-anywhere styles.
Meet Bona
Our daughters studied from their early days until they graduated high school. We met from time to time, school functions, carnivals and musicals, supporting younger parents to settle their children in school.
This somehow formed a friendship that allowed us to venture towards our common interest. Gemma always wanted to design clothes, I always wanted to continue my professional interest.
Gemma shared her vision, reaching a common understanding to enter the world of fashion that brings a way of dressing that defines femininity without being ostentatious, a dress code that caters to many occasions, lifts personal image without investing in preparation time.
We respect the dignity of every woman. Sophia and Pilar is the outcome that promotes the female psyche in a quiet, modest way. Far reaching yet close to the ‘corazon’. Simple lines with plenty of character.
That is how Gemma and I continue to live life. We come from very diverse backgrounds yet this desire to live, emulate fashion as S&P binds us together. So here we are, and with a bit of ingenuity and lots of labours of love, we hope to reach out to a lot of women out there who share our aspirations.
"EVERY WOMAN DESERVES BEAUTY AND ELEGANCE"
Good design is the result of paying attention to what women want and need.
There's a magic that happens when you put on a piece of clothing that's been pared to its simple, pure essence. It comes alive on your body. It makes you move differently. It changes the way you feel about yourself!
At Sophia and Pilar, we believe that a business run by women can make a positive difference in the world in a way that is particular only to women, who have different and complementary ways of contributing to the world than men.
