There are leggings and then there are leggings that let you stash a phone, T-shirt and even towel comfortably. If that sounds like a far-fetched idea, 22-year-old designer Dalia Benjamin has managed to create these “wonder” leggings, dubbed Utility Leggings, as one of two products for the debut of her homegrown activewear label Athena Athletica.
Launched exclusively on athena-athletica.com in July, the collection also comprises a sports bra and highlights the growing importance of the activewear genre in the post-loungewear era as our exercise habits and fitness patterns look set to accelerate.
In the fashion world, many designers have also begun making the pivot towards this direction: cue labels like Alaia coming onto the scene and the popularity of celebrity collaborations like Beyonce’s Ivy Park x Adidas riding on the activewear bandwagon.
Spring into action with the Athena Athletica’s debut essentials like the Utility Sports Bra and Utility Leggings.
While Benjamin was trained as a lawyer and holds a masters in marketing, fashion runs in her blood. Her grandfather Frank founded the fashion retailer FJ Benjamin which distributes a stable of brands such as French luxury goods maker Faure Le Page, cult skincare brand Dr. Barbara Sturm and Spanish footwear label Pretty Ballerinas in Singapore.
In fact, mum Odile who co-founded and designed Raoul – one of Singapore’s well-known fashion labels in the 2000s right to 2016 – is both co-founder of Athena Athletica and mentor to the young Benjamin.
“Our family business is fashion, so I had a unique childhood. As a kid, I followed my father visiting the company stores and was even fortunate enough to get the chance to attend fashion shows. Being so immersed in the world of fashion from a young age, I was inspired to get into it myself!” she says.
Here, Benjamin shares more about Athena Activewear.
