A firm favourite for ladies looking for relaxed, coastal fashion items and accessories, White Summer is popular amongst both holidaymakers and North Coast locals. Owner Carmen Lindsay works closely with local designers and her right-hand lady, Marla, to keep things new and exciting at the Ballito Lifestyle Centre store. 

White Summer fashion boutique owner and founder Carmen Lindsay has had a love affair with fabric, colour, and design for as long as she can remember.

Her popular Ballito Lifestyle Centre ladies’ clothing store is a firm favourite amongst women looking for relaxed, coastal fashion items and accessories, whether they live on the North Coast or are visiting on holiday.

Born in Durban, Carmen studied textile design “I always loved colour and fabric, and when I walked through the different departments at the Natal Technikon, textile design made the most sense to me.”

Carmen did not enter the fashion industry until much later in life. After completing her studies, she travelled to the UK on a working holiday for two years. She returned to South Africa and started working for various fabric print houses. She also spent a few years working in a weaving mill, designing woven fabrics for the automotive industry.

In the late 1990s, Carmen was pulled into trend forecasting while working for UK-based fabric manufacturer, Courtaulds Textiles. “I was sent all over Europe to look at trends and designs and then returned to South Africa to trend forecast and launch new fabrics for their biggest clients. It was an exciting time,” says Carmen. 

In 1997, when the textile industry in SA slumped, Carmen and her then-boyfriend, Ray, were offered redundancy and moved to the UK, where they had their two sons, Spencer and Thomas.

They returned to South Africa in 2006. “Our boys were young, and we wanted to be closer to family and see our sons grow up barefoot on the beach.”

Having made numerous contacts while working as a trend forecaster, Carmen decided to open a small fashion boutique to showcase the incredible South African designers and talent we have.

She first opened White Summer at the Sage Centre in Salt Rock, but found the perfect place for her store at the Lifestyle Centre a few years later.
 “Bruce Rencken was looking for small, locally owned businesses, and it just felt like a good fit for my brand. It was. I have never looked back,” she says.

With a strong focus on supporting South African designers, particularly in KZN, Carmen’s store stocks items from established, well-known designers and small, start-up labels.  She says she is spoiled for choice with so many incredible local designers. We are proud to have brands in store like Just Cruizin, Amanda Laird Cherry and Shelley Taylor Jewellery, to name just a few.

Being kept busy with the buying and merchandising side of the business, Carmen says she has been lucky to have fantastic employees to assist her customers in the store when she is not around. 

Her right-hand lady, Marla Chaturpal, has worked with Carmen for more than 10 years. “Marla is like family to us, and my boys call her the G.O.A.T (greatest of all time),” she laughs. “Marla has a fantastic rapport with our local customers, some of whom shop with us weekly. She has been a pillar of support for me and is passionate about her clients.”

Asked who the ‘typical’ White Summer customer is, Carmen says her target market is generally women between 35 and 60 who want to shop for relaxed, timeless coastal items in a welcoming atmosphere.

“Our range changes significantly during holiday seasons, but we also try to keep our stock fresh and get new items every week to cater for our locals.”

For more information on White Summer click here!