Sonya Lennon: Covid-19 left us with one option, rip everything up and start again

‘Get knocked down 10 times, get up 11’ became Sonya Lennon’s mantra as she tried to manoeuvre a pandemic world that no longer looked for fashion. Here, she writes about making Lennon Courtney’s collections relevant again

The new collection is called Doyenne, the definition of which is ‘the most inspiring and charismatic woman in her field’. Our world is full of these women.

As we surfaced needs that we didn’t know we had, over the last couple of years certain products and services have become surprise winners. Virtual meetings became a way of life (Zoom). We turned our gardens into outdoor rooms (BBQs, gazebos, and pizza stones).

We took up activities that made our souls sing, we took to the sea (fleece robes), with dogs (dogs) on paddleboards (paddleboards), and we rediscovered our parklands (trainers, picnic blankets) and cycleways (bicycles). We got comfortable in our own homes (hooded blankets, fleeces, pyjamas, candles). Oh, by the way, thank you Dunnes Stores for making Hygge, the Danish marriage of comfort and contentment, an accessible option on our shores.