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Jessica and Jep Robertson
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Jessica and Jep Robertson
We call them 'style setters,” those fashion influencers who can wrap a string around their wrist, say it's a bracelet, and instantaneously start a trend.
Musician Rick Caballo and model Melissa Core manage to fit the mold with their brand, Corello. By creating a line of apparel and accessories with a rock 'n' roll attitude, they've got the music community all abuzz. Originally from Wollongong, Australia, the creative duo spent years in other industries, which eventually brought them to Music City. Caballo, who is also a graphic designer and painter, met Core when he was doing a little 'strategic” casting for a music video; he asked Core to play his girlfriend. Life imitated art with a budding romancebut the moment also sparked a business collaboration.
'He had such a cool look. He started out making these graphic tees for band merch and accessories with such an edge about them. I asked him to make me some,” says Core.
She began wearing pieces from the line while appearing in other music videos, like The Band Perry's 'All Your Life.” On set, stylists, musicians, and makeup artists began asking where they could buy the pieces. 'Once I started to get a lot of compliments, the business side of me thought, ‘We should do this!' […] Our relationship came first, and the business came quickly after,” says Core.
Adds Caballo, 'It forced us to move to the second level, and then the third, and we grew from there.”
Through a bit of guerilla marketing, celebrities have been discovering the brand: Miranda Lambert wore a Corello eel leather cuff in her video for 'Fastest Girl in Town”; Hayden Panettiere has been photographed wearing their Antique Bottle Southern Mix Necklace, plus other pieces on the ABC show Nashville; Steven Tyler is a fan of Caballo's canvas art and has been spotted in several Corello designs, including their 'Keef Richards” tee; and the men of Duck Dynasty showed their support by wearing items during the No Shave November event to benefit St. Jude Children's Hospital. The brand was also recently featured in a commercial for Jack Daniels.
While neither Caballo nor Core have a background in fashion design, they do have a long history with good style. By simply looking cool, they're inspiring others to take on their bohemian-rocker aesthetic. Last month, they were even inducted into the Tennessee State Museum's Costume and Textile Institute during the museum's fall fundraiser, Sparkle & Twang.
Local retailers like The Label, Two Old Hippies, and Stacey Rhodes Boutique have picked up the line, too. 'The Nashville people have really embraced us and what we are about,” says Core.
For more information and a list of retailers, go to corellousa.com.