Two New Zealand family businesses — one born in the design workshop of Auckland, the other on a fifth-generation Southland sheep station — have come together to create a collaboration that celebrates the enduring value of local design and craftsmanship.

Davaar X Sylvester brings together the creative legacy of the Sylvester fashion house and the natural fibre heritage of Davaar Wool, in a collection that honours shared values of craftsmanship, family, and the importance of making things well — while highlighting New Zealand manufacturing.

For over three decades, Kate Sylvester and Wayne Conway have helped shape the identity of New Zealand fashion, building a brand that champions thoughtful design and a distinctly local point of view. Today, the Sylvester label continues that legacy under the next generation — Ike, Tom and Cosmo Conway — who are guiding the brand forward while staying grounded in the values their parents established.

Davaar founder Kate Macdonald, a fifth-generation farmer, draws from a different but deeply connected heritage. Raised within the rhythms of rural New Zealand, Macdonald created Davaar to tell the story of strong wool — designing garments that are traceable from farm to fibre to finished knitwear, and proudly made entirely in New Zealand.

The collaboration bridges the playful contrast between urban and rural New Zealand, bringing together two creative worlds that share a respect for family enterprise and the long view of building something meaningful over time.

“We love that Davaar is completely traceable and made in New Zealand,” say the Sylvester team. “It’s exciting to bridge the gap between North and South Island businesses and work alongside another family brand. The rural and urban contrast is fun to explore and aligns deeply with Sylvester’s attitude.”

For Macdonald, the partnership is also a tribute to the designers who helped elevate New Zealand fashion to the global stage. “We’ve long admired the legacy that Kate Sylvester and Wayne Conway have built over more than three decades,” says Macdonald. “They’ve shown how powerful New Zealand design can be when it’s rooted in authenticity. Their work has always championed the importance of making things thoughtfully.”

At the heart of the collaboration are two knitwear garments, originally inspired by Macdonald’s grandmother Sally, whose patterns remain foundational to the Davaar collection today.

For the Sylvester collaboration, these heritage silhouettes have been reimagined with a distinctive Sylvester design signature — an elegant gesture that acknowledges the shared respect between two creative families and the industries they represent.

Crafted from strong wool sourced at Davaar Station and manufactured entirely in New Zealand, the garments celebrate the quiet strength of natural fibre — renewable, enduring, and made to be part of a slower, more considered wardrobe.

The result is a collaboration that feels both contemporary and deeply rooted in place: timeless garments shaped by landscape, legacy, and a shared commitment to New Zealand craftsmanship.

About Davaar
Davaar is a New Zealand knitwear brand founded by fifth-generation farmer Kate Macdonald. Designed using strong wool sourced solely from Davaar Station and manufactured entirely within New Zealand, Davaar garments celebrate traceability, natural fibres, and the enduring story of the land they come from.

About Sylvester
Sylvester is a heritage label to the original Kate Sylvester brand, continuing the legacy of one of New Zealand’s most influential fashion houses. Now led by the next generation of the Conway family, Sylvester brings a playful, thoughtful perspective to contemporary fashion while honouring the brand’s longstanding commitment to design and storytelling.

Shared Ethos
This collaboration is grounded in a shared philosophy: that good clothing begins with thoughtful design and earns its value through longevity. Both Davaar and Sylvester create garments intended to be worn for years — designed for a lifetime rather than a season, and supported by a mindset of reuse, repair, and repurposing. At its heart, it’s about community: the people who make the garments and the people who bring them to life by wearing them.

Limited collection available both in-store and online from Davaar and Sylvester.
davaar.nz | sylvesterpg.com