Zimmermann Brought Its Stylish Sydney Flair to St. Barth to Fete Its New Boutique on the Island

“We aren’t going to open a store somewhere we wouldn’t want to play too,” designer Nicky Zimmermann said with a glint in her eye, dressed in a romantic and ruffled two-piece number from her fall collection. “We weren’t going to not stay and hang out here!” Moments later, the Sydney native would jump head first into the pool at Le Toiny, the magical beach club enclave, in her full runway look and sunglasses. Proving the point that Zimmermann clothes are meant for throwing caution to the wind, diving in, and living life to the fullest.

This joie de vivre, coupled with a uniquely Australian lust for having fun and looking good while doing it, has shaped the Zimmermann label, which sisters Nicky and Simone founded in 1991. To christen its new Rue du Bord de Mer boutique that recently opened its pistachio-shuttered doors in Gustavia, the duo got a truly global girl gang together. Many of the clique who joined them in the Caribbean for the milestone have also been their collaborators (on everything from art direction to set design, styling, and music) since those early days and have helped propel Zimmermann to become Australia’s first-ever billion-dollar fashion brand. Proving both their unwavering love for the ‘Zimms’ and their appetite to see what kind of playtime the fabled island had to offer, some had taken up to five flights and traveled for over 48 hours to make it for the opening celebrations.

As mentioned, these floaty frocks, slinky swimwear, crochet sets, and printed pajama silks that the label is synonymous with are created purposefully for making memories in. As actresses and models descended on NAO on Friday evening for a sunset dinner, it wasn’t long before plates of sushi, sea bass, and lobster ravioli were abandoned in favor of the sandy dancefloor instead once the DJ lined up some party-starting Diana Ross.

Seeing as guests were armed with their new Zimmermann ‘cozzies’ picked out from the store that morning, the crystal clear water soon became the place to be, with Bridgerton star Hannah Dodd, models Bambi Northwood-Blyth and Giedre Dukauskaite, and DJ Amrit Tietz among those who legged it into the ocean for a cool-down dip.

Earlier that evening, Nicky Zimmermann had caused hoots and hollers from the crowd when she had said that that brand had held a significant policy as a non-negotiable since day one; to translate it from her more colorful Aussie parlance used on the night, they simply won’t and don’t work with anyone who’s not a joy to be around.

On Saturday afternoon, once everyone had adequately rehydrated, gotten their vitamin D fix, and gone exploring in colorful Moke cars, it was time for round two. At the aforementioned Le Toiny, tucked away beneath a cliff and only accessible down a rocky road via Defenders, the location had been transformed into full Zimmermann-fest mode. Cocktails in one hand and rattan fans in the other, attendees snapped pictures of each other in the endlessly idyllic areas of the sea grape tree-shaded club, and within five minutes of arrival, many were already heading straight into the azul blue water.

A long and leisurely lunch followed, with watermelon gazpacho, fresh fish, and mango sorbet, while chilled cocoa-dusted pina colada or espresso martini shots appeared at convenient intervals. As the sun-soaked day lazed on, actress Lucy Fry, Delfina Blaquier and her daughter Aurora Figueras, and campaign regular Barbara Valente fancied their chances on surfboards that had appeared, taking to the waves in their ‘swimmers’ (to co-opt another endearing Aussie term.) Others, meanwhile, grazed on fresh guacamole and nachos that were being prepared tableside or hit the pool. Inspired by Nicky Zimmermann’s lead, a few leaped right in their outfits too.

The weekend welcomed a whole host of notable friends of the brand, including actresses Isla Fisher, Melissa George, Maddison Brown, Saffron Hocking, Amelia Gething, Azizi Donnelly, Beatrice Grannò, Odessa Young, Matilde Gioli, Martina Cariddi, filmmaker Gracie Otto, journalist Laura Brown, runway mainstays including Abby Champion, Cara Taylor, Erin Wasson, Jourdan Dunn, Camille Hurel, Estelle Chen, Aweng Chuol, Maria Borges, Pritika Swarup, Tami Williams, creative director Michelle Jank, luxury consultant Gabriele Hackworthy, and musicians Mimi Xu and Rainey Qualley.

Where to next?