Homegrown retail giant democratizes custom fashion
At a time when digital convenience dominates retail, legacy Filipino fashion house Karimadon is making a contrarian bet on high-touch, physical retail. With the opening of its new Karimadon Studio at the third floor of the South Wing of GH Mall in the Greenhills Complex, the 46-year-old brand is moving beyond its traditional ready-to-wear offerings to introduce an experiential, appointment-driven custom atelier. The move reflects a broader premiumization trend in the local retail industry.
“It’s not a new concept to us,” owner Josie Go tells DAILY TRIBUNE, explaining that customers in the know have long been able to have their dresses custom-fitted by the store. What was once an established service has now evolved into a dedicated atelier, housed in its first and only studio, back in the place where the brand began.
EMBI Nicolas, head designer.
“When we started in 1980, we were not planning it to happen this way. Because I was so young then with two small children, I was just thinking this can be like a hobby. We open a store. If it doesn’t work, I can go watch a movie because there’s a movie house there. But you know when we opened, it got so busy. Sales are good, so I don’t have time to go watch a movie,” Go smiles. “I would bring my son to school, in Xavier, before I opened the store. And then I would close the store, pick them up and then bring them to the store. It was like that.”
Through the decades, even with the rise of e-commerce platforms, Karimadon’s brick-and-mortar stores have continued to thrive. The brand is now taking its retail experience a step further, with Josie’s son, Rick, at the helm of operations.
“It wasn’t really a big transition because it’s really been something that we’ve been doing for over a decade. We started it because we heard some of our customers really ask us, ‘Hey, do you do custom or do you do alteration?’ So we started to do it slowly because we really wanted to provide additional work for our manufacturing here in San Juan,” says Rick.
SABRINA San Diego in Sylvie.
LESLEY Martinez-Rivero shines in a Cheena Gown.
EVE Luna puts a stylish spin on the Jessie Set.
KELLY Misa wearing Isabella from The Invitation Edit.
Full circle in Greenhills
For this homegrown fashion brand, opening its new studio at GH Mall is a homecoming of sorts. Established in 1980 by husband-and-wife team Richard and Josie Go, Karimadon began as a modest clothing store in the iconic Virra Mall, on the very grounds where the modernized Greenhills Complex stands today.
Even its name carries a personal touch, fashioned from a combination of the first names of the founders’ children.
Over the past 46 years, Karimadon has grown from a local startup into a nationwide retail operation with around 40 locations. While the brand has long been known for making elegant ready-to-wear gowns accessible to everyday Filipinos, it is now bringing its custom atelier services to the forefront through a dedicated retail space.
MICA Pineda, Marie Faith and Hannah Banal.
Democratizing the atelier
For decades, finding the perfect gown for a milestone occasion meant choosing between the convenience of off-the-rack shopping and the often exclusive, sometimes intimidating world of bespoke designer ateliers. Karimadon aims to bridge that divide with its new Studio concept.
By formalizing its Custom Atelier services through on-site appointments, the brand is making personalized fashion more accessible. Brides, members of wedding entourages and debutantes can work with a dedicated in-store styling team to create garments suited to their preferences and requirements.
The model combines the creative freedom associated with a boutique couturier with the reliability, production capabilities and more accessible pricing of an established retail brand.
“We know what our market wants. We don’t just stay in one place or with one concept. We update over the years, so I think that’s what has kept us going. And then we are very, very careful. We want to provide good quality at reasonable price. And we are so particular about the fit of the dress because we do it ourselves; you know, one sample maybe takes so many corrections before we display. We have it manufactured, we design it, and we source our own fabrics. We choose everything,” Josie says.
The move also reflects changing consumer preferences, particularly among Millennials and Gen Z, who increasingly value personalization and experiences in their shopping choices. Rather than simply choosing a ready-made dress, customers are given the opportunity to participate in the design process and have a garment made to their specifications.
“With some of our designs, we really try to incorpoate local accents or local touches to our to our clothes, whether it’s the silhouette or the fabric. So in the same way, we try to do the same thing for our store, which has wood, the solihiya design and the furniture is locally made. We really wanted to highlight that we are a proud local brand. We do our manufacturing here locally. We design it locally. It’s something that we really wanted to highlight,” Rick adds.
A strategic fit
The choice of location for the flagship concept is neither accidental nor without sentiment. The newly modernized GH Mall is undergoing its own transformation, moving beyond its historic identity as a bargain-shopping destination toward a more upscale lifestyle center. For Karimadon, establishing its Studio here aligns with the mall’s evolving retail landscape.
Ultimately, the new space demonstrates how a homegrown fashion brand can preserve its heritage while adapting to the expectations of a new generation of consumers. By combining its tradition of accessible fashion with a more personalized retail experience, Karimadon is showing that physical stores can do more than survive the digital age: They can offer something online shopping cannot easily replicate, one custom stitch at a time.