As The Uniform Edit (TUE) celebrates its 20th anniversary this month, it’s not just a milestone. If we’re being biased, it’s a testament to our journey fuelled by passion, dedication, and our pursuit of excellence. What began as a dream for us as a young married couple has evolved into a thriving business that has impacted many Australian business and helped to shape the world of corporate fashion.
It’s all began two decades ago, when we (Fiona and Anoop Anchal), fresh from our honeymoon in Italy, were inspired by the wall-to-wall shirt stores in Rome. As we walked down cobblestone streets, visited the bespoke tailoring stores, and indulged in the simplicity of Italian life that we embarked on our entrepreneurial voyage. With a vision to bring this Italian shirting elegance to the Australian people, we opened our first retail store, Shirt Studio, at Tattersalls Arcade; wall-to-wall shirts and a range of over 200 shirts. This was all within a year of tying the knot.
The next decade saw Shirt Studio flourish, with four retail outlets and an online presence. Yet, it was a serendipitous turn of events that propelled Shirt Studio toward its destiny. As the demand for custom company uniforms grew, so did our resolve to meet it head-on. Thus, Shirt Studio Corporate was born about 8 years into the beginning of this journey, carving its niche in the uniform market. 
By the 10-year mark, the winds of change blew in a new direction. Recognising the shift in focus, we bid farewell to our retail stores and embraced the corporate world with open arms, by winding down retail and jumping deep into the uniform market. Soon after, the rebrand to The Uniform Edit emerged, symbolising not just a change in name but a commitment to excellence in corporate uniform solutions.
Predominantly a custom uniform business, we made another right turn in our business model when Covid put a stop to international travel and delays on production in our overseas factories. At this point TUE quickly diversified to quadruple their uniform range by bringing on broad a range of local uniform suppliers and brands, increasing our range by 500%. This opened new opportunities for TUE and our clients. Once purely a custom business, we were now able to provide more solutions to our existing clients. Helping them expand their uniform range without having to rely on multiple suppliers was the biggest shift and what propelled them post Covid and allowed them to survive Pandemic.
Post Covid, the business saw a change internally when Fiona Anchal, founded her business and exited the company as Co-Director. Fiona went on to open Wholesome Bellies, a plant-based cooking school at Woolloongabba and is very entrenched is the exciting new venture. I’m thrilled, after 20 years, to still be in my business, and so very involved in the day-to-day client relationship work, with Fiona popping her head in from time to time. It’s been a change in our dynamics, but equally thrilling to see another business grow and flourish.
Through all this change, one thing that has remained at the core of TUE is our commitment to style, quality, and innovation.
20 years in business has seen changes in fashion, working environments and the way we do business and dress for business. We’ve moved with the changes, diversified and are so proud to be here standing stronger than ever 20 years later.
For TUE, whilst quality and style has always been paramount, it’s evolved to be so much more than clothing; it’s about creating a cohesive brand identity that resonates with clients and employees alike, and helping our clients build their brand in a way that empowers them, and their employees.
As we reflect on two decades of success, it’s not just the milestones we celebrate, it’s about the countless clients we’ve served, the relationships forged, and the impact made to our clients and our team members.
And as we raise a toast to the past, we are so excited, and we look eagerly towards the future, where the legacy of The Uniform Edit will continue to unfold, one stitch at a time.
Here’s to another 20 years of style, service, and success! Who knows, where we’ll be in another 20. Maybe our mini Anchal children will continue the family business. Time will tell.
On behalf of my wife, Fiona and our team at TUE, we thank you all for your business, support, and commitment.
