By Aimee Chanthadavong
Less than two weeks in court, Myer and Australian fashion designer Kym Ellery have reached a mutually agreed settlement.
This comes after Ellery breached an exclusivity agreement with the department giant when she was found to be supplying her clothing line to David Jones.
Kym Ellery said she acknowledges the terms of exclusivity agreement she signed with Myer in 2011.
“I understand that the contract I had to exclusively supply Myer was to operate until 2014. I am sincerely sorry that I also agreed to supply another retailer on an exclusive basis outside of my agreement with Myer,” she said
“I truly regret making such a mistake and going forward I will honour my agreement with Myer and will extend my supply of the Ellery collection to Myer until 2015.”
Myer spokesperson Jo Lynch told RetailBiz Ellery has already started to build a close relationship with Myer head of womenswear and they are confident that this will continue.
"It’s in our best interest to have a positive working relationship with all of our designers and this is no different. We’re certainly looking forward to working with her,” she said.
As part of the agreement, Ellery will also contribute towards the legal costs incurred by Myer in the proceedings.
“This is a highly unique situation. It required Supreme Court proceedings, significant time and management to determine a way forward. The effort to reach a resolution for this exclusivity contract was extensive,” Lynch said.
“This exclusivity contract is used by designers and retailers around the global as it’s an important way of operation for the retail industry to drive customers to a particular store. It’s also used to promote a mutually equal relationship.”
Ellery has also been granted the opportunity to also continue supplying her mainline collection to David Jones.
“I am looking forward to now being able to focus on my work again,” she said.