Verandah Magazine publisher Candida Baker and author Robert Drewe’s son, Sam Drewe, is combining his love of horses and his passion for designing with his brand Samson & Bronc, writes Georgina Bible.
When Samson & Bronc designer Sam Drewe finished Year 12 at Shearwater Steiner School in 2010, he was determined to do two things. The first was to find a livelihood that would enable him to continue living in the Northern Rivers region, and the second was to continue to own and ride horses, despite the well-meaning advice from friends and family who all told him he would have to head for a city to find work and establish his brand.
Fast forward five years and these days Sam’s morning commute to work is a mere ten paces across a garden to the handsome wooden horse barn that houses not only the family stables, but also the Samson & Bronc office where Sam and his life and work partner, Brendon Thurgate, work at creating the next move to expand their increasingly successful lifestyle and fashion product range.
Brendon Thurgate (left), and Sam Drewe in their barn/office…
“I started the Samson & Bronc brand as a clothing label the year after I left school and I experimented with a couple of ranges,” says Sam, “then I met Brendon and we became the Samson & Bronc team. I’d always known that I wanted to be a lifestyle designer and as we began to develop my clothing range we realised that we also wanted to branch out into some other lifestyle products, and the idea came to us to create a range of candles.”
Within eight months of launching their candle range they are stocked in stores from Brisbane to Melbourne, and as far west as Armidale, as well, of course as in the Northern Rivers, and in the Byron region where they live.
The pair wanted to create a quality range of candles with an artisan feel which would also reflect the environmentally friendly ethos of the Northern Rivers region. After working on a business plan, they decided to produce a range of handmade, eco-friendly candles crafted exclusively from local materials and recycled bottles sources from local restaurants and cafes. They use soy wax and local natural oils to perfume the candles which include such evocative fragrances as Fig Forest, Tropical Coconut, Orange and Cinammon, Passionflower, Black Bamboo and Lily and Exotic Woods.
‘The Phoenix collection name came from one of our off the track racehorses,” says Sam. “We thought his name was perfect for him because he was resurrected to a new life as a performance horse. Plus Phoenix seemed like a great name for a candle range with its connotation of the mythical bird, and its fiery rebirth.”
As well as working together in the business, Brendon has also taken up riding, and any particular day sees them dividing their time between their business, and the horses. “We’re lucky because when we need to take time out from work, all we have to do is walk a few metres, get our horses and go riding – and, sometimes if the horses are being frustrating, it’s a relief to go to work!”
They’re also lucky enough to live within coeee of one of the Northern Rivers most popular eateries – The Harvest at Newrybar. Not only do the couple get their daily caffeine hit there, but The Harvest Deli stocks their candles, and their most recent addition to their products – a vintage inspired range of diffusers. “We’re not into mass production,” says Brendon, “and everything we do has an individual feel to it. Our candles, for instance, are hand-made so no two are identical.”
Sam (left) with Benji, a rescue horse, and Brendon with Zorro.
An example of their drive to produce exclusive products was when they wanted to create a special candle fragrance for Mother’s Day. “I wanted to design a candle that would fill a room with warmth and love – but also with a story,” says Sam.
Sam remembered his mother talking about his great-grandmother and great-grandfather, and the rose garden they’d created together in the garden of their villa in Bulgaria. “When the Second World War broke out, my great-grandmother had to leave Bulgaria for England with her five children. She never saw Frank again. He was killed in Egypt, but many years later Eva showed my mother letters from him talking about how one day they would recreate their Bulgarian rose garden.” When Sam also discovered that Bulgarian Rose Otto was the most highly prized fragrant essential oil in the world, the story and the perfume came together. The Bulgarian Rose candle is now exclusively sold at Millar & More in Bangalow.
Sam cites American fashion and lifestyle product designer Ralph Lauren as an inspiration. He sees the Samson & Bronc label branching out, in time, into a whole range of clothing and lifestyle products. “I’ve seen how quickly a product made with love can become popular and I’m totally inspired by Ralph Lauren,” says Sam. “He started-off making and selling ties to small shops in New York and he was soon approached by Neiman Marcus and of course he’s gone on to build an empire. We really want to create quality clothing and lifestyle products infused with the beauty of the Byron Bay region that are stocked in shops and department stores around the world,” adds Sam.
They’re certainly on the right track.
Northern Rivers stockists include The Harvest Deli, Flowers at the Farm, Millar & More, Cactus Hill Project and Resouled. To see the full list and the Samson & Bronc range of candles, clothing and lifestyle products go to: https://www.samsonandbronc.com.au/
