FashionLondon EDIT
designer Katie Eary on his debut collection,
but his work was met with very mixed
reviews.
Only Victoria Beckham and the Olsen twins
have gained true high-fashion industry
respect as celebrities-turned-designers. In
2004, done with their former lives as child
TV stars, Mary Kate and Ashley debuted
The Row, which shows at New York Fashion
Week, followed by the lower-priced Elizabeth
and James in 2007, to critical and commercial
success. No doubt their work inspired
Victoria’s own move towards the catwalk.
A successful fashion line might depend
on the creative team behind it, but it also
involves putting your face – and in this case
Brand Beckham – on the line. “No one has
ever given me anything,” says Victoria. “I have
always been a hard worker… The Spice Girls
had a crazy schedule. I can’t imagine what
I’d do all day if I didn’t work.” Now a mother
of four, she admits that her own mum, “can’t
understand why I’m working this hard now,
to be honest,” but with her shows frequently
receiving rave reviews, sculpting her brand
has seriously paid off.
from there I have built fashion collections
that could respond as much to my own desire
to evolve as to the demands of the public,”
she explains.
She’s a style chameleon but it seems Victoria
has finally, and successfully, found her true
colours: “I used to wear clothes which would
make me stand out and now I don’t so much
because I don’t feel I have anything to prove,”
said Beckham. “The first time (as a Spice
Girl) around I felt famous, but now I feel
successful.” With her ss16 ready to wear
collection due for unveiling at New York
Fashion week, all that remains to be seen is
how much further Victoria can take her style
empire.
Victoria appears to have developed a fashion
ethos of if you want it – make it. “I wanted to
create handbags, because I couldn’t find the
right handbag that I wanted to carry. Then I
couldn’t find the right sunglasses, so I decided
to make my own sunglasses.”
Beckham boldly asserts she knows what
women want. “I know usually what I would
wear corresponds to what many women want:
well-tailored clothes that make you feel good
and are both modern and practical. Women
are more dynamic today than ever before and
you want to be able to respond to that and
reflect the needs of women who have full
lives, important jobs, and want to look their
best.”
Last year, Victoria opened her first flagship
clothing boutique on London’s Dover Street,
and her Battersea atelier hosts the 100
employees who channel her work and the
demands of her loyal customers. “I know
what my clients have come to expect from
me, so I have tried to create pieces that are
identified with my own personal style, and
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