Olsen twins have cool all sewn up

Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen attend the Holt Renfrew release of their Elizabeth and James collection for fall 2009. 

"Probably 2," jokes Mary-Kate Olsen, trying to remember how old she was when she first learned to say "brand."

Now 23, she and her sister Ashley C operators in three thick-skinned industries, show biz, the rag trade and the licensing game C have managed the dazzling feat of going from tween-wear for Wal-Mart to fashion collections, both men's and women's, carried by merchants of upmarket cool. Yesterday, they were off to attend the opening of the Opening Ceremony mega boutique in Tokyo.

The day before, they were in Toronto as guests of Holt Renfrew, which stocks both The Row, the Olsens' high-end range dedicated to simple shapes in superb cloth, and Elizabeth and James, a mid-priced label that also appears on shoes and jewellery (designed by the esteemed Robert Lee Morris) and that since its launch in 2007 has seen 500 per cent growth.

Both collections have found credibility in a favourable reception from media and retailers, but the Olsens C four mesmerizing moon-sized, expertly made up, green eyes side by side on a couch in a suite at the Windsor Arms Hotel -- are anything but complacent.

They have an energy field coloured by that mystical quality that belongs to twins, who always seem to be in on something that you're not. On top of that, they are charged with the nervous awkwardness of young women, who, though rich and powerful, were products before they grew into people, an act they performed publicly. They assert their adult wisdom in the form of caution, recognizing that the whole idea of celebrity fashion is prey to meanness and disparagement.

What gives these former kid stars the right? Just because they started work on Full House when they were only 9 months old and today are the full owners and co-presidents of the Dualstar Entertainment Group, the brand management company that made them multi-millionaires, doesn't mean they can thread a needle.

Those, however, are not the thoughts that arise when you watch the Olsens enter a room. Now throwing themselves into knowing how a jacket is cut, they know how to cut a fine figure.

Mary-Kate has thrown together a mannish but sheer Elizabeth and James shirt and vintage Issey Miyake trousers with an androgynous authority that would give Lauren Bacall a run for her money. Ashley has on a cashmere crewneck sweater and black miniskirt, a knowing version of an old-school back-to-college look. As if to show off what she's learning, she explains the skirt is made from a techno fabric, a blend of "Lycra and polyamide," which, for the non-cognoscenti, translates as "stretch nylon."

In fact, the Olsens would prefer the clothes to do their own talking. They chose not to use their names on their labels, because, Ashley explains, "We want the product to stand on its own."

That turns out to have been a smart move. According to an article in Women's Wear Daily last month, celebrity lines are losing their lustre, except for those such as Justin Timberlake's William Rast, Gwen Stefani's L.A.M.B, and the Olsens' The Row and Elizabeth and James, which, as less brazenly opportunistic, seem more plausible.

In other ways, the Olsens' set-up is exceptional. "We own our brands," says Ashley, "You know how most people have managers and agents saying what they should do? We don't have that."

While it was Ashley's search for the perfect T-shirt that instigated the establishment of The Row in 2006, both sisters are committed to growing their fashion business.

"We're not looking for the short term," says Mary-Kate, sounding equally executive and, an inch shorter than the five-foot-two Ashley, looking even more like Minnie Mouse in her hefty Prada shoes. "We've worked too hard to just cash out. We want to do it with integrity."

More active than Ashley in the entertainment business, Mary-Kate, who has appeared on the television series Weeds and last year played in a movie called The Wackness, nonetheless does not think of herself as an actor. "Very few great scripts or characters come along. So for me, working 10 days out of two years, doesn't really count. As a day job, this (fashion) is what I do."

However, the Olsens are not doing it in any flashy way. They have no interest in staging fashion shows. They want their collections to go directly to the consumer. The most direct route, of course, would be via stores of their own. But about retail plans, they say nothing more than they've given them thought, just as they have to handbags, eyewear and fragrance.

"We're really looking at this as long term," says Ashley. "We're business women before anything. We happen to be artistic ones, and driven ones as well."