Going steady for just shy of half a year now, East to West is one of the many new businesses that have come into the Yass Valley, making its place as a seller of fine clothing, jewellery and boutique selections, fitting a niche within the Yass Valley, while offering a widely available selection. Located along the main street, East to West sits right in the heart of the Yass township, with great access for residents looking for a boutique fix, as well as those passing by.
East to West, formerly Diamond Dust & Co, was born out of a vision from co-owner Sarah Robertson, who while operating out at markets and stalls at the time, specialised in making clay and polymer earrings and candles, before deciding that the Yass township needed some more boutique and clothing stores. After reaching out to her sister, Jess Harvie, the pair sought a location, seizing the opportunity to take the main street building. After a brief rebranding, Diamond Dust & Co. became East to West, due to its country-style selection ranging from Western and Eastern style clothing.
“It was always her dream, because we thought Yass could use some more clothing stores. This opportunity arose, we found this building and just thought, why not, let’s give it a go.”, said co-owner Jess Harvie.
Jess Harvie
“My sister and I are in partnership, she just asked me to join her and I thought, sure, why not.”
Running as a family business, Jess and Sarah work part-time shifts both at the boutique and at other jobs to support each other and the business, often hiring help from their mother to keep the business family oriented. The duty of family runs deep within the line, as the family have been calling the town home some six generations back.
“We’re very family-oriented. We have a six-generation farm, so we really are locals”, said Jess.
What sets East to West apart as a clothing stall in the Yass Valley is the niche availability of their items, which are often handmade, sourced locally and across the country, with range including country style menswear, women’s event-season dresses, shoes, belts, and hand made accessories including jewellery. While the clothing is provided by wholesalers, the batches are small and rarely come back, so residents ought to get what they can while stock lasts.
“We have a pretty high stock turnover, we only really get something in once. Once it’s gone, it’s gone, and we’ll get something new. It keeps it fresh, and keeps it exciting and challenging”, said Jess.
“We do try and cater to everyone, we do have a lot of younger and older generations come in, so we try to get something for everyone. We’re also size-inclusive, we stock up to size 24 in some clothes. A lot of people that have come in have said that this is what Yass needs, I guess it’s just different from other clothes stores we have here, it’s a bit more of a niche, just being a boutique itself, although we do have everyday wear.”
Due to its proximity to other businesses along the main street and welcoming heritage architecture, East to West has grown since its opening in April, with welcome community response, strong support and notable interest helping root the business as a pillar of the Yass fashion community.
“It’s amazing on the main street – we thought this building suited our country and western boutique style with the lovely ceilings and being a heritage building”, said Jess.
“There’s been great community response, we’re very lucky, the community has definitely been supporting us, although I think some people are still discovering us, we still have people coming in who didn’t know we were here.”
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or those who haven’t had the pleasure of coming in yet and want to see what East to West is all about, the boutique is available at 1/155 Comur Street and is open from Monday to Saturday, 9:30 to 5 pm.
