"From a career point of view ... I strongly recall a very well respected British fashion writer saying to me after the second NZ Four show [in September 1999], 'Your career will never benefit from a group show'," she explains.
And so, in 2002, she held her first solo show in London with a collection called Runaway. Walker has fond memories of that first show, held in London in a emptied out b-store (a much-loved store turned brand).
"The sound system and lighting was beyond lo-fi, the audience was twice what we anticipated and ended up spilling out down the pavement which the models used as an extended catwalk lit by passing taxis. It was lo-tech and energetic and fantastic. It had a real buzz and resulted in a lot of attention and sales into great stores. Still one of my favourites," she reminisces. "The backstage area was in the cellar and the girls had to scramble up and down steep, narrow stairs for every look. We worked with Christian Louboutin on the shoes that season, so they were all about 15cm high. I'm amazed no one broke a leg."
These early London shows produced some iconic Karen Walker images - rock star daughters Ruby Stewart and Theodora Richards walking in shows in 2005, model Lily Cole in a polka dot prom dress from Karen in TV Land, also shown in 2005, the entire Liberal and Miserable collection shown in 2004 - with inspirations ranging from Vincent Ward's film Vigil to a twisted Amelia Earhart. Walker spent eight seasons in London, before making the decision to move to New York, where there were many more American and Japanese buyers and press; two markets she was keen to develop.
"London is a great environment for new ideas and new brands and, as such, it's a very good place to start a fashion career, but it does have its limitations in terms of growing past that initial stage. After eight seasons showing there we felt it was time to move on to the more grown-up, business-focused and slick New York schedule."
The brand made its NYC début in 2006 with the land-girl inspired collection called Victory Garden, which got a "killer review" from the industry's toughest, most respected critic, Cathy Horyn of the New York Times, and featured on the homepage of the popular and influential website style.com.
"That was a pretty nice thing to wake up to the day after the show," says Walker. She appreciates the city's slick production and businesslike approach: "It's so together. Nothing's left to chance, the business and the production is 100 per cent nailed and I like that. The only surprises should be on the runway. Everything else should be totally in control and handled. It's somewhere where people are in the business of fashion ... not just in fashion."
It's an attitude that many younger labels are embracing, hoping to expand their focus beyond New Zealand to the world. Walker's advice for younger designers hoping to grow internationally by showing abroad is that it's not just about the show - it's about the audience. "It's about presenting the line and a show isn't always the most appropriate way to do it," she says. "The most important thing is to get the audience. We were selling into Europe and the States for at least five years before we first showed in London in 2002. It's good to have a familiarity and an audience first."
As for her own lesson after 20 seasons? "Good things happen when you take yourself out of your safety zone."
* Join Karen Walker at the Viva Live seminar at the NZ Fashion Festival on Wed 29 Feb.