The Story of Lyfer

LYFER began as a shared love of birds between two co-founders and grew into a way of seeing the world differently.

For Josh Symons, birds were part of life early on. As a kid, time spent birding with his uncle Doug, a devoted bird-watcher and conservation advocate, shaped how he experienced the outdoors. Learning to pay attention to the wonderful world of birds around him stayed with him, returning years later with even greater focus. Today, birds continue to shape how he sees and moves through the world.

For James Lambrou, birding came later. It grew through shared walks in urban parks, unplanned diversions on weekend drives, and time spent outdoors together. What began as simple curiosity became deeply grounding. Birding became a way to reset, reconnect, and experience the outdoors more consciously, shaping how James thinks about life, wellbeing, and the quiet joy that birding brings.

As our time with birds deepened, so did a shared realisation.

Birding wasn’t what people assumed it was.
It wasn't a niche or an activity for a certain stereotype.
It wasn’t something we felt the need to hide or play down.

It was calming, social, challenging, engaging, exciting, and deeply human. Yet it rarely showed up in the world that way, especially to those outside birding.

We also understood the power of brands. When used thoughtfully, brand can spark curiosity, and curiosity is where awareness begins. If what someone wears, uses, or carries prompts a question or a conversation, it can help more people notice birds, care about them, and understand their place in our lives. It doesn’t need to be literal. The most meaningful brands create an idea or a feeling, and allow people to interpret it in their own way, as long as they connect with the lifestyle it represents.

That belief sits at the heart of LYFER.

Built in Melbourne, LYFER is a lifestyle brand rooted in birdlife, the outdoors, and considered design. It exists to recognise birding as a real, lived lifestyle, something modern, relevant, and worth claiming.

Everything we create is either designed by us or made in close collaboration with global makers and small-batch manufacturers who share our respect for craft, people, and the planet. The intention is simple, to make products that feel good to use, meaningful to own,and offer a story while carrying a sense of individuality.

Birding has long been boxed into narrow perceptions, but the reality is far broader and more diverse. LYFER exists to raise awareness of birdlife and to help create space for birding to be seen, worn, and lived openly.

This is our way of contributing.
By paying attention.
By choosing curiosity.

By storytelling through its makers.
By using brand as a tool for good.

LYFER is for people who notice birds, or are starting to.
For those who recognise birding as part of how they move through the world.

Welcome to LYFER.    It’s all about the birds.