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All in Interviews
I have known JJ Martin for my entire professional career. And yet, until this podcast interview, I hadn’t realized just how much our lives were parallel. We are both California girls, we both left the United States to follow our hearts to Europe, and we both became top fashion journalists in international fashion capitals.
The world is starting to get back to work which means many women are turning to shapewear brands to help counteract the last few months of comfort food consumption. So I thought this would be a perfect time to chat with Jens Grede. Jens is the partner and board director of Kim Kardashian West’s shapewear brand SKIMS. And this Sweden native is a savvy fashion executive whose eclectic career path has given him quite a unique and clear-eyed perspective on the industry.
I have been following the career of Belgian fashion designer Olivier Theyskens pretty much from the beginning. I have seen him grow from a wunderkind, whose dark goth-like gowns were being worn by the likes of Madonna to the Oscars when he was just 21 years old, into the established and well-respected artist he is today. A designer who has come up with a signature style of dark romantic ensembles that are formed from rigorous attention to construction, precise tailoring, and meticulous fabric choices.
Now more than ever start-up fashion labels are in need of a guiding hand when it comes to best practices for the new normal corona economy the world is entering. That is why it made perfect sense to speak with one of the industry’s leading experts in the field, Alison Lowe.
At first blush, the floral dress might not be thought of as a wardrobe icon in the same way as, say, a blazer, a crisp white shirt or a little black dress. But dismissing the floral dress would be a mistake. It has just as important a role as any of those other icons in our closets and has an evergreen staying power.
Burak Cakmak, the Dean of Fashion at Parsons School of Design in New York is a man with a mission. His entire career has been in the pursuit of making the fashion world more streamlined, socially responsible, and sustainable.
Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele has always been a woman who follows the beat of her own drum. She speaks her mind. Follows her gut. And has an unparalleled eye when it comes to making unexpected sartorial combinations work.
Michelle Elie is a fashion aficionado who has elevated the concept of a collector to dizzying new heights. The American-Haitian born jewelry designer and former fashion model literally walks the walk and talks the talk when it comes to her profound love of the work created by one of fashion’s most avant-garde designers, Rei Kawakubo.
Dana Thomas is a dyed in the wool, true blue journalist. She lives it, breaths it and consumes it every day. She is the Woodward and Bernstein or the Ronan Farrow, if you will, of the fashion industry. Her deep dive, investigative books into the inner workings of the fashion world have earned her the respect of her peers and I am sure, when she comes knocking, a few shivers of fear down the spine of at least a couple of CEOs during her career.
Casey Cadwallader is a man with a mission. As the artistic director of Mugler, he is building the brand for a new generation of women and showing the world how sexy, sensual and strong clothing can also be very inclusive. Already he has generated quite a buzz around his runway casting which has included models of all shapes, sizes, ages and colors.
I think few people in the fashion industry would argue with me if I said that Sara Sozzani Maino is one of the hardest working women in fashion.
Vikki Kavanagh is the Global Buying and Merchandising Director at The Outnet, the sister e-commerce website to Net-a-porter and Mr. Porter. And the reason she has held that venerale position at the company for almost three years now is because she is a true buyer’s buyer.
“Fun”. That was how the Oscar winning actress Tilda Swinton described working on her latest film, Suspiria.
The Dutch designer has an insatiable appetite for knowledge, leading her to pave the way for never-before-seen haute couture.
Much has been written in Western press about the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s male-dominated society and the status of women’s rights. Meanwhile, one mother-daughter team has been working diligently to bring about real change from within.
There are some fashion insiders who call designer Alexandre Mattiussi “a one in a generation” fashion designer. And I would have to agree with that assessment. He is a bit of a fashion unicorn in that, not only is he a down to earth, friendly and gregarious guy who happens to be a very talented fashion designer, he also has a real head for - and a love of - both the business of fashion and the theatricality of it.
“Come on over and take a look Pamela,” said photographers Mert and Marcus as they shot Ella Fanning for the cover of this issue. The moniker wasn’t a slip of the tongue, it made sense, because the woman in the photos was not the girl that we have all come to find delightful in films like Maleficent, Super 8 or We Bought a Zoo.
When I began to do some research on Joey Zwillinger, the co-founder of the sustainable footwear brand Allbirds, it was hard not to notice the pull quote from Time magazine on the company’s website that referred to its Merino wool sneakers as “the world’s most comfortable shoe”, or when Refinery 29 said “we won’t blame you if never wear any other shoe ever again”.
The first thing you notice when you meet Arthur Arbesser, besides his head of floppy hair and big round glasses, is his upbeat attitude. He radiates nothing but positivity and you get the impression that he always has a sunny side view on the world. It’s a perception that is further supported by the fashion he creates.
I first met Law Roach in early 2018 at a Tommy Hilfiger show in Milan when he came up to me to say how much he liked the 60 Second Fashion Reviews I did on Instagram. I was instantly charmed by his warmth, his openness and, off course, his amazing outfit. I soon realized, although I didn't know it at the time, that I was a fan of Law as well.
