Interview news and archive

Slow fashion marketplace Upconic wants to bring back appreciation for clothing

What are sustainable brands and how can one find them? How can one bundle like-minded brands that appeal to a common target group? Isabell Conrad asked herself these and other questions after spending much time and energy searching for sustainable designer fashion and slow fashion online. For the business graduate, the matter was clear - draw up...

People |Interview Featured

Jean Paul Gaultier: ‘Freedom is the first lesson I learned from fashion’

As the Spanish Puig Group, owner of the Jean Paul Gaultier brand, transforms into a public company, the now-retired designer continues to make a name for himself. Invited to show his work at the ‘Cinémode’ exhibition at the Scad Lacoste campus in the US, Gaultier gave FashionUnited and the students a lesson in freedom. Here are some selected...

Business |Interview Featured

Nona Source: Why the success of its business model favours a new circular model

Nona Source, the platform specialising in the marketing of deadstock materials from fashion houses, has introduced a solid business model. In a sector that is still poorly mastered eco-circularity, Nona Source pays particular attention to remaining economically balanced, while retaining awareness of the other factors that need to be taken into...

Fashion |Interview Featured

Wasted Hour founder: 'Men need to learn that there's nothing shameful or wrong with borrowing from women's fashion'

First a digital magazine, then an online shop and finally a brick and mortar store: Hamburg-based concept store Wasted Hour's trajectory to date is about as multifaceted as that of its founder Martin Hufnagel. A law graduate with a penchant for fashion, culture and music, Hufnagel is a man of many talents - from founder to buyer to DJ - all...

Business |Interview Featured

Taipei Fashion Week’s associate director on the emerging market and evolving heritage

The face of Taipei Fashion Week has been under constant construction since its launch in 2018, as those behind the Taiwanese event continuously explore, experiment and shift their approach in order to grow awareness. This differs from the already well-established creative market that has a prominent place in the country in the form of cultural...

Fashion Featured

MCM president Sabine Brunner on ‘mavericks’, marketing and the metaverse

'Modern Creation Munich' - that's what MCM once stood for when the fashion brand was founded in 1976. But how do you guarantee that creations always remain modern and how do you manage the balancing act between tradition and innovation for a new generation of luxury customers? These are all questions that Sabine Brunner was confronted with when...

BusinessFeatured

Elena Strahova, CEO, Riga Fashion Week: 'Latvian brands tend to operate within their own niche'

On the fringes of the traditional fashion industry circuit, Fashion Week in Latvia's capital Riga has established itself as a benchmark event in the Baltic region, distinguished by its focus on sustainability and ethics in fashion. Elena Strahova, founder and CEO of Riga Fashion Week (RFW), which took place from April 8 to April 11, takes stock...

Fashion |Interview Featured

Multifaceted design: The challenges of emerging creators at 080 Barcelona Fashion

From Avec Amour’s María Undo and Daniel de Villanueva tearfully greeting each other at the end of their first catwalk show and Guillermo Justicia's friends, bouquet in-hand, waiting to congratulate him on his debut to Santi Mozas of Compte Spain working until the last minute alongside 404 Studio designer Anaïs Vauxcelles, his close creative...

Fashion |Interview Featured

Behind the veil with Brenna Simmons, founder & creative director of nordeen

Launching a fashion brand brings a wealth of challenges with it, but launching a bridal wear brand perhaps even more. No longer the sure-fire business it once was, the bridal industry has witnessed a rise in informal weddings, a surge of interest in vintage or unconventional attire, and highly informed shoppers. Combined with inflation and an...

Business |Interview Featured

Fran Marchena, CEO and founder of Spain’s Hoff: ‘Franchises have become a great ally in our expansion’

Valencia - What started as a fledgling online business in the Spanish province of Alicante - the cradle of the country’s footwear par excellence with the city of Elche as its main representative - has ended up becoming a meteoric company that has closed a turnover of 53 million euros and a 90 million retail price. In less than eight years,...

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Replay CEO: ‘Genuineness and authenticity are currently the greatest luxury’

Vintage is all the rage among Generation Z - especially those active on the video platform TikTok - who have recently discovered and reinterpreted numerous fashion trends from the past. The Italian denim brand Replay is capitalising on this phenomenon and reissuing a denim classic from the 90s: the '9zero1'. The relaunch, combined with a...

People |Interview Featured

Aaron Esh reflects on London’s emerging designer landscape and fashion week support systems

Earlier this year, Aaron Esh took to the London Fashion Week runway for the second time in his career. The collection, made up of elevated autumn/winter staples for London’s elite, at first appeared as a direct exploration of the city’s mundane life, mirrored in a subdued colour palette and architectural shapes. Yet, on closer inspection, it...