In light of Cachia's 8th Birthday, we sat down with co-founders Sophie Cachia & Leah Betts to reflect on the journey that brought us here. From humble beginnings sparked by a simple conversation, to becoming one of Australia’s most loved sleepwear brands. It’s been a ride full of lessons, laughter, and late nights — in comfy PJs, of course!
How did the idea for Cachia first come about back in 2017?
SOPHIE: "Leah & my family have a history through the Essendon Football Club so our parents have known each other for quite some time, and then she hired me as an ‘influencer’ to promote one of her other brands back in roughly 2016. From then she approached me to work together in a business capacity as she has the experience in manufacturing & production, whilst I came with a ready made audience through my social media platforms. Over time we tossed several ideas up, as well as many different brand names, before Leah actually suggested we use my surname as the brand. Funnily enough, it wasn’t actually just sleepwear we launched initially!"
LEAH: "Back in 2016, I was working on another business when I crossed paths with Sophie. We clicked straight away. She mentioned that she’d been thinking about starting her own brand, and without hesitation I said, “I’d love to do that with you.” There wasn’t a grand plan or strategy at that point, just two women with different strengths, mutual respect, and a genuine drive to create something that felt fresh and different. That casual chat turned into a partnership, and not long after, Cachia was born."
What was the very first product you launched and how was it received?
SOPHIE: "Our approach going in was that I often successfully promoted & marketed other peoples brands, so why not create our own. The initial concept was creating ‘things Sophie loved’ and ‘things Sophie wore’ - so we took that approach when designing. Our first product was the ‘Be You’ slogan t-shirt which overall was received quite well with our audience. What’s important to remember with this launch, was that after launching it at a price point of $79.95, we instantly pivoted when our audiences feedback was that it was perhaps too high of a price point, so we immediately dropped it by $10 and refunded everyone the difference who had already purchased it. The idea of our customers opinion & honest feedback being so crucial to us as a brand was something we proved from day one, and has continued right til now a whole 8 years later."
LEAH: "Our first product was a “Be You” T-shirt. It had heart behind it, and we believed in the message, but to be honest, we missed the mark with the price point. It didn’t quite land how we hoped. That was a good early lesson. We regrouped quickly and launched the first Gigi PJ set, and that’s when things shifted. It was the right product, at the right time, for the right audience. Sophie had such a strong understanding of her community, and the Gigi set just hit differently. It sold fast, the feedback was great, and it set the tone for what would become the foundation of our brand."
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in those early days?
SOPHIE: "For me personally, having something of your own to promote can be very daunting. I also felt like I owed Leah & her family a great deal for giving me such a wonderful opportunity in the first place. So knowing how much they backed me, I did feel like I had to deliver as CACHIA wouldn’t have ever existed without them. Regardless of how confident you are in front of camera, it can still be very challenging to somewhat sell ‘yourself’ or in my case my ‘brand’ - so it was a huge adjustment for me rising the ebbs and flows of good & bad product launches. I also found it challenging as I was known as ‘The Young Mummy’ online - a early 20’s woman documenting her daily life as a young mum across social media - to then becoming a business owner - I had to learnt to adjust how to speak to my audience, until I learnt that authenticity and transparency was always going to be the only way.
Like any business, especially in early days, it is so important to take on board customer feedback. Without them, there is no brand and no business. Not taking things to heart when a product doesn’t go how you thought it would, and instead listening to what your customer base wants & need, means you have to remove any ego you have and always use it as a learning curve."
LEAH: "Like any new business, there were a lot of moving parts and a lot of figuring things out as we went. One of the biggest challenges was understanding exactly who our customer was and what they actually wanted, not just what we thought they wanted. Designing sleepwear that struck the right balance between comfort, style, and affordability took time. We had to test and learn, some things flopped, some things flew. We stayed open to feedback and made quick decisions, which helped us grow fast, but it wasn’t without late nights and tough calls."
Can you describe a “pinch-me” moment from the past 8 years?
SOPHIE: "Oh! Where do I even begin!! There’s been too many! After 8 years, I will never ever get used to seeing CACHIA out in the wild. I get so excited I usually go up and talk to the person wearing it - even made better when they have no idea who I am but are wearing CACHIA because they’ve been told how great the product is!
I will never forget receiving the very first sample of our stretch elastic waistband with CACHIA on it. I couldn’t believe that my name was going to be on something I loved so much, and that others would soon be wearing it. Similarly, I’ve always carried our first CACHIA button sample in my wallet too, as something Leah has taught me is to always remember where you started.
Special mentions go to appearing live on Studio 10 on Channel 10 showing our range back in 2019, selling out of 10,000 units of Harries/Gigi within minutes during COVID, seeing new mums tag us in their hospital photos after they’ve just given birth - knowing that CACHIA is their choice of sleepwear to have with them in hospital, selling out regional events where customers would line up just to buy our products, and most recently - appearing on The Today Show with Karl Stefanovic wearing CACHIA on TV."
LEAH: "There’ve been a few, but one that really stands out was during last year’s Black Friday launch. We had 65,000 people online waiting for the drop. It was wild. Seeing that kind of response — people literally sitting at their computers waiting to shop our PJs, was a huge moment of “Wow, we built this.” It made all the behind-the-scenes work feel worth it. It also reminded us how strong our community is and how much they believe in what we’re doing."
What’s been your favourite Cachia piece or collection to date and why?
SOPHIE: "I’ll never be able to go past the Gigi. It was our first baby and what set us up on the path of transforming CACHIA into a sleepwear & loungewear brand. I have worn leopard print my entire life. I wore it when it “wasn’t cool” to wear leopard print. So to have our most popular and long-standing pair pf pjs be our inaugural pair even 8 years later is mind-blowing.
Another favourite from back in the day was the KAYLA. It was our first pair of pjs that came with shorts & a long sleeve slouchy top. As someone who always had hot legs growing up, I loved this style and I still to this day love the print so much."
LEAH: "For me, it’s the LB collection. It’s clean, classic, and unapologetically black, which suits my style to a tee. There’s something about black sleepwear that just feels elevated, even when you’re lounging at home. That collection felt very true to me and to the brand’s evolution. We’d found our rhythm by then, and it showed in the design and the way our customers responded."
What sets Cachia apart from other Australian sleepwear brands?
SOPHIE: "Lots! Firstly, your brand is only as good as your quality and your customer service. You can’t have one without the other. We did A LOT of work on the customer journey in our early days and how vital it is to always provide every level of customer care to your customers. This is something we definitely pride ourselves on.
Quality is also what keeps your customers coming back, so to be still operating as we do 8 years later means our product is good. You can have the best marketing in the world, but that will only get you so far. We have an incredible customer return rate which highlights that they keep coming back for more.
We are real too. Businesses pop up every 5 minutes now. They are often what’s trending, who’s the ‘it’ people of the time on socials, and who did they pay to wear their range. We have always stayed in our own lane and authentic to our customers. We use real people as models and have been a brand for the ‘everyday’ person from day one. We are relatable and create product our direct consumer asks for."
LEAH: "Cachia is about more than just sleepwear. From the start, we’ve focused on building a real connection with our community. We listen to them, design with them in mind, and bring them into the process as much as we can. We’ve never tried to be everything to everyone. Instead, we’ve kept things simple: design pieces that are comfortable, make people feel good, and reflect what they actually want to wear. We’re part of their everyday, their downtime, their first days at home with new babies, their sleepovers, their lazy Sundays. That connection can’t be replicated."
What’s the working dynamic between you two like? How do your strengths complement each other?
SOPHIE:"Leah and I both agree that we have had a successful 8 year partnership in business because we can’t do what the other can, so there’s little to no room to step on each others toes. Despite the fact we are continually learning from each other, our expertise and knowledge come from completely different fields, so we truly couldn’t do this without the other person.
LEAH: "Sophie and I balance each other really well. We both have a strong work ethic and a good sense of humour, which definitely helps on the hard days. Sophie knows her audience inside out and has a creative instinct that I really respect. I’m more operations-focused, thinking about systems, logistics, and how to make the business run smoothly behind the scenes. We’ve always trusted each other to play to our strengths, and that mutual respect has been a big part of our success."
How has being a mum influenced how you approach the brand?
SOPHIE: "One thing we’ve always wanted to be is ‘achievable’. We want everyone to see themselves in CACHIA, regardless of who you are. And that stems from the fact that at the end of the day, we are both mums to three kids each and love nothing more than being at home with our kids all in our pjs.
As a mum, I know when I am shopping for myself and my children - I look for two things. Affordability and quality. That’s why we have always operated with the highest testing and quality control within CACHIA, utilise the best quality fabrics we can, all whilst doing our best to keep it at the most affordable price point possible.
In a time where we saw most businesses have to introduce a price increase across their brands due to the affects COVID had. As owners, we took the loss on ourselves to avoid having to put our prices up for as long as we possibly could as a business."
LEAH: "Being a mum grounds you. It gives you perspective. I’m not an influencer, but I am a busy mum, and I understand what it’s like to want to feel good in your downtime. You want clothes that are comfortable but still make you feel like you. That thinking has shaped a lot of what we do, creating pieces that are practical but still stylish. It’s also influenced how I work, I know how important flexibility is, how to juggle, and how to show up even when things are chaotic. That’s reflected in the brand, too."
How do you plan to continue evolving while staying true to the Cachia brand?
SOPHIE:"This is something we are forever working on. If I was to describe CACHIA in a few words it would be vibrant and comfortable, so it’s about finding the balance of providing new fabrics, prints and designs all whilst staying true to what CACHIA is originally known for. CACHIA provides connection for people, whether that’s matching with the family, or getting the same pair for your girls weekend away. But we also provide confidence, to perhaps rock your bright, bold animal prints in the comfort of your own home. However we evolve, the key messaging will always be the same (which takes us back to day 1!)- to always be you."
LEAH: "We’ll keep doing what we’ve always done, listen to our customers, respond to what they want, and keep evolving without losing who we are. Growth is important, and we have some big plans ahead, but staying connected to our community is always the priority. Every product we launch, every campaign we run, it all comes back to serving them well."
What do you want customers to feel when they wear Cachia?
SOPHIE:"Comfortable, first and foremost. There’s no point having the most visually pleasing, aesthetic and photographically appealing sleepwear if it doesn’t provide what we all look for in sleepwear - comfort.
Confident. I want you to be confident to rock whatever print, design or style you wish when you sit down on your couch at the end of a long day.
And like family. Because that’s what CACHIA is all about. Being connected, included and feeling like you too are part of our large CACHIA family."
LEAH: "Like themselves. Comfortable, relaxed, and confident in their own skin. That’s the goal. We’re not trying to make you someone else, we just want to make pieces that help you feel good in your everyday life."
If you could say one thing to the customers who have supported you from day one, what would it be?
SOPHIE:"That NOTHING we have achieved today has been possible without your continual support of the brand. Without you, there is no CACHIA. Thank you for including us within your homes: for your happy moments, in your times of need, and for choosing us to be your gift of choice."
LEAH: "Honestly? Just, thank you. We see you. You’ve shown up for us time and time again, and we don’t take it for granted. Whether you’ve bought one pair of PJs or every launch since day one, your support has built this brand. We’re incredibly grateful."
What’s one thing you’ve learned about business or yourself through Cachia?
SOPHIE:"That both the highs and lows will come. No business will ever have success without a great deal of setbacks or hiccups. As a business, it’s about being accountable, adaptable and flexible to adjust to these times when they come, because trust me, they will come! Your customer base is your voice, and to never loose sight of why you’re doing it. If we made every pair of pjs to our exact style and taste - we wouldn’t be here today. It’s about listening to your audience and catering to their needs and wants more so than your own.
And that running a business is bloody hard work! Your team and who you surround yourself are incredibly crucial to what happens to your company. I’ve always said “if business was easy, everyone would have one!” yet not many businesses that start out as a ‘small business’ stick around too long. I’m proud to be standing strong eight years later, from what started as a coffee catch up between Leah & I, to today. And I am so thankful to everyone along the journey who has helped us get to where we are - both staff and customers."
LEAH: "That you have to back yourself. Set your goals, work hard, and be prepared to pivot when things don’t go to plan, because they won’t, and that’s part of it. I’ve learned to enjoy the process, even when it’s messy. Cachia has taught me so much, and I’m still learning every day."
