When an international celebrity has even the merest hint of an affiliation with Aotearoa, it's a bloody big deal; think Jack Harlow rocking Wynn Hamlyn during his Jack Down Under tour, or Friends fans having conniptions after supposedly spotting Lisa Kudrow dining in Wellington earlier this month.
So when British electropop songstress Rita Ora - the partner of acclaimed New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi - spent her last day in New Zealand enjoying a spot of retail therapy in Auckland's CBD, it caused a bit of a stir.
Ora, 31, trawled the hangers at the Britomart branch of the homegrown luxury leather brand Deadly Ponies on Monday, reportedly bagging $3467 worth of goods, according to Stuff.
In a photo shared to her Instagram Story, the 'I Will Never Let You Down' pop star posed in Deadly Ponies' Polar Rider leather jacket, perched on a chair in-store. Paired with a black Marc Jacobs beanie and simple black pants, the hitmaker captioned the pic: "I'm absolutely obsessed with @deadlyponies, this jacket I've got on is LIFE."
The patent lamb leather and shearling-lined jacket retails for $2499 and is available in both black and steel - at the time of writing, only one size of the steel colourway is in stock online, with the black sold out entirely.
Ora also snapped a second picture in the nearby Te Komititanga square, in which she paraded her brand-new accessory - Deadly Ponies' Mr Sling Midi Python, a python print cross-body bag with a price tag of $799. The leather purse, which features brass hardware and a detachable top handle and shoulder strap, is also sold out online at the time of writing.
"A girl with [shit] to do needs a good on-the-go bag," Ora captioned the pic, tagging the brand alongside emojis of praying hands and a heart.
Deadly Ponies brand manager Diana Marshall confirmed to the Stuff that the jacket, bag and a matching AirPod case were gifted to Ora during her shopping trip, a visit she described as "quite a special moment" for the staff.
"The group chat for Deadly Ponies was blowing up," she told the outlet.
The shopping trip was "somewhat organised" through a mutual friend of Deadly Ponies founder Liam Bowden, who is also friends with Waititi.
Marshall told Stuff that Ora's appreciation for Deadly Ponies on Instagram - where she has 16.1 million followers - has quickly generated positive attention for the brand on social media, noting that their account has seen some healthy growth to its follower count overnight, as well as receiving some "exciting" feedback.
Last month, hip-hop hitmaker Jack Harlow donned Kiwi designer Wynn Hamlyn for several performances on his Jack Down Under tour, including his shows at Sydney's Roundhouse and Melbourne's Forum.
There has been speculation over recent weeks that Ora and Waititi, 47, have covertly tied the knot - however, the rumoured marriage has yet to be confirmed by either party.
