Bettina Liano (born 1966) is an Italian-Australian fashion designer, creator and former owner of the "Bettina Liano" women's clothing and jeans label.

Career

Liano's career in fashion started by chance in the early 1980s when

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

retailer Joe Silitto noticed a dress that she had made for her sister, and asked about selling the design. In 1983, Liano and her mother opened a shop, "Sempre L'Unico", in

Toorak Village Toorak () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington local government area, on Boonwurrung Land. Toorak recorded a population of 12,817 at the 2021 ...

. The family business, which included Liano's two sisters, did well and they opened two more shops, in

Chapel Street Chapel Street is a street in Melbourne, Victoria, running along the inner suburbs of South Yarra, Prahran, Windsor, St Kilda and St Kilda East. Route Chapel Street is essentially straight and runs for over 4.14 kilometres along an approximat ...

and the

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

. After leaving Sempre L'Unico to start her own business, Liano, with her husband Roy Christou, launched the eponymous Bettina Liano label in 1989. Two years later they started making jeans"spray-on-tight, hipster jeans", in contrast to the loose fitting styles of the timewhich became one of her most popular items. In 1999, Liano won a Federal Court injunction preventing Satch Clothing from selling clothes that had been made using her design in breach of

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...

. She was one of the first designers in Australia to take such legal action to protect her

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

. She also won settlements against other stores copying of her designs. In 2005, Liano designed a collection of clothes for young girls, sold exclusively by

Myer Myer (stylised MYER, sometimes known as Myers) is an Australia, Australian mid-range to upscale department store chain. It trades in all Australian states and one of Australia's two self-governing territories. Myer retails a broad range of ...

, under the children's clothing brand Barbie. In 2010, Liano launched a diffusion label "T by Bettina Liano", exclusive to Myer. She also won ''

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

'' magazine's Fun Fearless Female award in the Designer category. In 2011, the business went into

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...

, but in 2012 recovered after striking a licensing agreement with the Sydney-based Apparel Group. Liano retained control of the business. At its peak, Liano had eight stores in Australia. In February 2013, Liano closed all except one of her Australian stores and opened one in

SoHo, Manhattan SoHo, sometimes written Soho (South of Houston Street), is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, and has also been known for its variet ...

. In September 2013 the business again went into administration. Subsequently, the "Bettina Liano", "T by Bettina Liano" and "O Jeans" trademarks were acquired by the Apparel Group. In 2015 Liano created a new label "BYBL" ("By Bettina Liano").

Personal life

Liano was born , one of four children of Italian immigrant parents. She grew up in

Brighton, Victoria Brighton is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 11 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Bayside local government area. Brighton recorded a population of 23,252 at the 2021 census. ...

. At 23, she married Roy Christou; they have two daughters. Liano and Christou were also business partners. They later separated. Liano is the sister of

Gina Liano Gina Liano (born 1966) is an Australian barrister, author, entrepreneur and television personality. She is best known for her role in ''The Real Housewives of Melbourne''. Early and personal life Liano was born Georgina Caroline Italiano in Bri ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Liano, Bettina 1966 births Living people Businesspeople from Melbourne Australian fashion designers Australian women fashion designers Australian women company founders Australian company founders Australian people of Italian descent People from Brighton, Victoria