A New Era for Studio Salt and Light: Better Quality, Faster Delivery

If you have visited or shopped with Studio Salt and Light recently, you might have noticed some pretty big changes to our website. We hope you like the new look and feel - we have had so much fun rebuilding the ecommerce experience this time around. But perhaps more importantly, these changes are not just superficial; they are part of a significant operational overhaul we went through this year.

The "Why": Rethinking Our Christian Lifestyle Brand

When Studio Salt and Light was launched nearly five years ago, we wanted to create a Christian lifestyle brand that combined great products with biblical messages - and we did exactly that. By leveraging great third-party partnerships, we were able to outsource inventory, production, and fulfilment so we could focus entirely on design.

This model worked well, allowing us to release many cool, scripture-inspired designs quite quickly. However, the downside was obvious, and the most frustrating issue was the slow production turnaround. Previously, every apparel product was printed to order at our partner's facility. While they were local to us and great at what they did, every order took at least a week to ship, and that simply wasn't good enough.

We know this was a major pain point for many of our customers. As long as we relied on third parties to handle our production and fulfilment, we were always bottlenecked by their service levels. As a brand that caters to our own people - the Australian Christian community - we believe our customers deserve better. And as people saved by grace, we want to do better work for God's glory, even if it means completely overhauling our entire operation.

The "What": Going Better, Fewer, and Faster

So, what exactly has changed? Simply put, we are going "better", "fewer", and "faster".

Better: Elevated Quality and Creative Control

Earlier this year, we went on an international sourcing trip with one goal in mind: finding a new garment supplier that meets our specific requirements and can deliver on their promises. We achieved that - praise God for sending the right partner our way!

The unisex t-shirts and hoodies available on Studio Salt and Light today are no longer made with AS Colour blanks (which were excellent and served their purpose well). Instead, we now use our own selection of quality materials and cuts straight from the manufacturer. This shift has enabled us to take greater creative control over our garments.

One important detail you will notice immediately is the labelling. Instead of traditional OEM neck tags and wash labels, every product now features a custom-designed, printed neck label for greater comfort.

Fewer: Streamlining for What Matters Most

The 80/20 rule of business certainly applies to us: a small percentage of our products accounted for the majority of our sales. We dug into the details of every order we’ve received over the past five years and carefully identified the designs, colours, and sizes that resonated most with our customers.

The result? We removed more than half of the products on our website. It was a tough decision, no doubt, but ultimately a sensible one. This allows us to streamline our inventory and focus on the pieces that matter most to our community.

Reducing our past product catalogue also presents an excellent opportunity to introduce new styles and ranges. The most exciting collection we are dropping is our brand-new range of Australian leather goods. Featuring premium leather sourced locally and handcrafted by us, this is something we have been working on for over three years, and we cannot wait to share it with you.

Faster: In-House Fulfilment from Melbourne

As a wonderful result of our new sourcing model, we now have full control over our own inventory. There will no longer be a long-awaited production turnaround. Instead, we now fulfil all in-stock items directly from Melbourne within 1-2 business days via Australia Post.

We know that for many, this will be the most welcome change of all.

What’s Not Changing?

We hope it goes without saying that the core of Studio Salt and Light will never change. We proclaim the gospel, point you to Jesus, and help you live your Christian life boldly and unashamedly, because you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. All the changes we bring into the business will always serve that central mission.

Matthew 5:13-14

"You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden."

Colossians 3:23

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters."