Mother and daughter team Cynthia Rowley and Kit Clementine Keenan work together on a podcast called “Ageless.” Together they compliment each other’s individual brands. Rowley opened her shop in Montauk in 2010 and Keenan, a student at New York University, runs a budding fashion line called KIT.
We caught up with the two to discuss working together as a team on the podcast, their love of Montauk, wellness, fashion, and so much more.
Tell us a little about your “Ageless” Podcast and how you came up with the concept. Who are some of your most memorable guests?
Cynthia & Kit: Ageless is our mother-daughter podcast that we started a few years back. Our focus is on fashion and wellness and we love highlighting guests that are experts in those areas. It has been such a wonderful bonding experience for us because we are both very busy gals! We loved hosting iconic American designer Norma Kamali as well as holistic health coach Bianca Valle along with a bunch of friends, including Charlotte Lawrence, Serena Kerrigan, Athena Calderone, among others.
What’s it like working together on projects as a mother/daughter team?
Cynthia & Kit: We are constantly learning from one another and bring different strengths to the table. Working together on “Ageless” has really been our long-term mother-daughter project, but we are always helping each other out on fun ventures for our individual brands.
What do you love about Montauk? What is a perfect day-in-the-life in Montauk like for you?
Cynthia & Kit: Montauk is truly our little slice of paradise, we have been going out there during the summer for over 20 years. The best day means totally going with the flow, breakfast in town at Joni’s, long days at the beach surfing, oceanside lunch at Marram Montauk, and barbecuing with friends.
Cynthia, you designed your first dress at age 7. Did you always know that you would be a designer?
Cynthia: I went to the Art Institute in Chicago for fine art and found that I could combine my love for drawing, sewing, and business together after college — but I was always drawn to clothes as a medium for creativity from a young age.
Kit, tell us a little about your clothing line KIT and your collaboration with artists like Richard Prince, Vaughn Spann, and Mark Grotjahn.
Kit: I started my eponymous brand in college as a way of bringing my knowledge of the art world to a younger audience who might not have been able to collect works from the greats just yet. I have learned so much about running a business and the creative side of fashion from my collaborations. KIT has been such a wonderful way to meld my interest in fine art with all that I have learned from my mom about the DTC (direct to consumer) fashion industry.
Cynthia, your signature wetsuits and neoprene swimwear are produced using recycled materials and green technology. Talk a little about that and your dedication to making a more sustainable environmental impact.
Cynthia: In addition to our surf and swim created with environmental impact in mind, our ready-to-wear collections are made in limited quantities and are replenished as they sell out. We wanted to adopt this model to decrease overproduction, which has become such an issue in the fashion industry. We are innovating to bring our customers beautiful garments while reducing waste.
Kit, tell us a little about your fitness routine and the wellness content you create on Instagram for those who follow you.
Kit: My goal has always been to make wellness accessible for my audience. I love sharing home workouts and short workout “snacks” that can be done throughout the day and within the boundaries of a busy schedule. My recipes are always approachable and can be made by anyone with or without a fancy kitchen or background in cooking.
Cynthia, early on in the pandemic you did a DIY video showing people how they could make their own face mask. You were able to make 100 masks in 11 minutes. What was that like knowing that this simple tutorial was able to help save lives?
Cynthia: With little knowledge about the pandemic at the time and how the virus would rock our world, I was just trying to do what I could to help.
Are there any East End charities or foundations that you work with or support?
Cynthia & Kit: We have been longtime supporters of A Walk on Water and the Surfrider Foundation. The need has never been greater, however, and there are tons of East End charities that need your help. A great a place to start is hamptonsunited.org.
Cynthia, tell us about your surfboard designs, handcrafted by Jeff “Doc” Lausch.
Cynthia: Our surfboards are the perfect pair for our wetsuit designs as a brand, we just want to share our love for the ocean and surfing with our community!
What’s next for each of you?
Cynthia: Along with new weekly ready-to-wear drops, we have a big new collaboration launching in October for a new category that has always been a dream of mine. I can’t wait for you all to see!
Kit: I am just a few classes away from graduating from NYU, which is super exciting, but also very scary as I am sure your younger readers can relate to. I love the brand I am building through my social channels around wellness and cooking, but I am also so passionate about fashion and art, so the next few years will be about experimentation and working across several different fields.
