10 Years of Frame: Reflecting on a Decade of Matchmaking

It's hard to believe, but Frame just turned 10.

What started in 2016 as one person's belief that recruitment could be done differently has grown into New Zealand's leading fashion, retail, marketing and executive recruitment agency — with recruiters based in Christchurch, Auckland and Tauranga, and a network spanning tens of thousands of candidates nationwide. Over the past decade, we've placed an average of 102 candidates a year, adding up to partnerships with 107 brands across the country.

But honestly? The numbers were never really the point.

Why We Started

Our founder, Rachel Smart, set up Frame with a simple idea: recruitment in fashion and retail didn't have to feel transactional. It could be personal. It could be built on actually understanding the industry — not just matching a CV to a job description, but understanding what makes a brand tick and what makes a candidate the right fit for it.

"When I started Frame, I wanted to build something different from the recruitment experiences I'd seen elsewhere," says Rachel. "I wanted our clients and candidates to feel like they were working with people who genuinely understood their world — because we'd lived in it ourselves."

That's still true today. Our team's backgrounds span fashion design, retail leadership, marketing, HR, PR, beauty and wholesale account management. It means when we're placing someone into a head office, a workroom, or a store floor, we actually know what that role looks like day to day.

The Frame team throughout the years…

What We're Proud Of

Ask Rachel what she's most proud of after 10 years, and it's not the placement numbers.

"What we're most proud of isn't the number of placements we've made — it's the relationships we've built along the way, with both the brands we partner with and the candidates we've helped find their next role," she says. "The industry has changed so much in a decade, and we've had a front-row seat to it — that's the part I love most."

It's also meant being part of an industry that plays a bigger role in New Zealand's economy than people often realise. According toFashion & Textiles New Zealand's Threads of Tomorrow report, the fashion, clothing and textile sector contributes 1.9% to NZ's GDP — more than supermarkets, specialty foods, and the construction industry — and employs a workforce that's 78% female.

"As a female founder, I'm proud to contribute to an industry with that kind of impact," Rachel adds. "It's a reminder of just how much this sector means to New Zealand, beyond what people usually give it credit for."

What's Next

Ten years in, Frame isn't slowing down. We've recently expanded into the Australian market — the first time we've taken our recruitment model beyond New Zealand's shores — and we're excited about what that means for the brands and candidates we work with on both sides of the Tasman.

"A decade in, we've grown through a lot of change in retail," Rachel says. "But what's ahead excites me just as much as what's behind us. We're just getting started."

Thank You

None of the last 10 years would have been possible without the clients who trusted us with their teams, the candidates who trusted us with their careers, and the Frame team — past and present — who've made it all happen.

To celebrate, we took over our social channels last week with #5DaysOfFrame — throwbacks, team Q&As, a look at the brands we've worked with, and a giveaway to say thank you. Check it out HERE

Here's to the next 10 years.