In the latest episode of FashionTalks host Donna Bishop speaks with award winning fashion designer Christopher Bates. Donna and Christopher chat about:

• Christopher's foray into fashion (his second career)
• The small moments of inspiration and big swings that built his brand
• How an iconic design element brought people together for life
• The balancing act of being an entrepreneur and a designer

Donna Bishop @thisisdonnab

FashionTalks @fashiontalkspod

Christopher Bates @chistopher.bates.official

ChristopherBates.com

CAFA @cafawards

cafawards.ca

TRANSCRIPT:

Donna Bishop: [00:00:00] Christopher Bates, it is so wonderful to have you here on Fashion Talks. Thanks so much for joining me. 

Christopher Bates: Thank you for having me. 

Donna Bishop: Oh my gosh, it's such a pleasure. And I know we'll get into, because you're coming to us from Milan, Milano. So I love the internationalness of our conversation. Thanks for dealing with the time zones. 

Christopher Bates: No problemo. 

Donna Bishop: I love to start off with the same question, which I'm very excited for you to answer, is I believe that all of us who have a love of fashion, who work in fashion, there is a moment, often when we're very young, when we understand that clothing, that fashion has a power beyond just protecting our our bodies from the elements. 

And I'm wondering if there's one that stands out for you. 

Christopher Bates: Yeah, I'm glad you asked because I certainly had that moment. And for me, it was when I was young. um i grew up in Vancouver and this would be during the s. 

I was really into skateboarding and my mom bought my brothers and I [00:01:00] really cool clothes, and Chip and Pepper, TNC surf, lots of neon. 

And I just loved it. and i was an energetic kid. I remember I never liked wearing pants. I would always wear shorts, even if it was winter in Vancouver, it gets pretty cold. 

But I'd put on my favorite shorts. I'd run to school every day. And I just felt like, okay, I was in a good mood. Putting on an outfit that I liked made me in a better mood. 

It enhanced my mood. And I was aware of that even as a kid. I wanted to wear my favorite outfits all the time. So yeah, I loved, loved clothes and I was creative. So I started sketching even back then when I was a kid, just ideas for logos and different pieces.

Donna Bishop: And it sounds like you had parents that didn't fight you if you wanted to wear something that made you feel good. Because I'm just thinking about, you know, skateboarding was probably one of the things where I became aware of, you know, street wear and something that was very different from my small town, [00:02:00] Ontario, growing up environment. And it was such a revelation in how different it was. 

Christopher Bates: Yeah. And I would literally seek that out. Like even from a young age, like if everybody was wearing like blue jeans, I wouldn't want to, I always wanted to be an individual. So I would look for, you know, what's new and yeah. And my mom definitely supported that. Like, 

We'd go down to the States to go shopping because they had things we couldn't get here in Canada. And then, you know, we'd find like Stoozie. Like I remember when that brand started and they had all this crazy stuff. That was like one of the first streetwear brands. 

And it was good for a skater as well. So yeah, yeah that was how, that's how I grew up. 

Donna Bishop: What kind of teenager were you as you were, e you know, because what I'm finding so fascinating as you're saying this is I hear you talking about Stussy and Streetwear, which is so not the brand that you end up designing. So I'm curious about how that evolution happened. 

Christopher Bates: That's, yeah, as a teenager, I was fairly [00:03:00] rambunctious and rebellious; but, you know, I sort of transitioned. I would say once I turned to I started to get a little bit more serious and I was more interested in business, ah for example. So, um yeah, I kind of, I grew up and I matured starting around 

Donna Bishop: And when you say that, do you mean you started to look at creative things more seriously? Or like, what do you like? What was going on in your head when you say you were maturing, but still had this like understanding of the power of expression bubbling within you too? 

Christopher Bates: Yeah, I guess that's when I was taking my career seriously. Like I was like thinking, okay, what university are you going to go to? What are you going to study in university? Like, what do you want to do as a career?

And this whole time, like I knew I wanted to do something creative. um But I wasn't really into like fine arts. And, you know, growing up in Vancouver and in [00:04:00] Canada in this period in the s, fashion was nowhere on the radar. 

and I had no idea, um you know, about that industry. And that was a career I was thinking, okay, marketing was interesting to me because, you know, you had advertising, graphic design; that appealed to me. 

Architecture appealed to me a lot. So those were sort of, you know, realistic career choices at the time that I was considering. and it wasn't until I graduated from high school, I did my first trip to Europe. 

And that was a game changer. That's when, ah you know, it really opened my eyes and my imagination. I became really inspired, um you know, by Europe and fashion and just everything about that new world for me. 

Donna Bishop: What was it about Europe that appealed to you so much? Like, do you remember a scene or, you know, something that just really sort of was that bolt [00:05:00] of inspiration? 

Christopher Bates: Yeah, it was, it wasn't just one thing per se, but I remember being in Rome, you know, on that first trip and, and I was just taking pictures of everything because literally like the lamppost, you know, would have design elements. It would have like a little, you know, gargoyle head on the side and it was so different from the architecture in North America, which is very sort of straightforward and functional. 

um In Rome, everywhere I looked, there'd be like ruins and even that was, you know, beautiful and stimulating. So, you know, that was one part of it. I would say the architecture and the art, the history was really stimulating. 

But then, yeah, the people's individual style as well. And that's something that, ah you know, really registered with me on future trips that I did still, you know, in my early twenties, um, I remember being in Stockholm and I would 

say that's where I had, you know, my Eureka moment, um, because the people there were [00:06:00] just so stylish and they had so many creative things going on with their outfit and their look. 

I felt like they were light years ahead of, you know, Canada and, during this whole period, I had been keeping a sketchbook with ideas for designs and logos and things. And it was that moment, it was the summer of when I was in Stockholm, and I said, these people would like my ideas.

That's when I knew there was like a market out there for the concepts that I had. So that's actually the moment when I decided to become a designer. 

Donna Bishop: What was it about Stockholm that was so inspiring? Like when you say these people or, you know, this city you think would like your ideas, what was the synergy there that you were sensing? 

Christopher Bates: It was little things, you know, just walking on this shopping street. I saw this guy who had a necklace, but it was tied around his wrist. 

um [00:07:00] And I just thought that was really creative. Like I knew it was a necklace and it was just the way that he had done it. And I remember seeing guys when I was at the clubs and they were the first ones, they were like showing their ankles, they had tapered pants They might have even had some kind of elastic at the bottom and then they'd have dress shoes on and you could see their ankles. And that was like, I'd never seen that before, but I have to say, I thought it looked awesome. 

It looked really cool and really fresh. Like they were still business and, um you know, well-dressed and presentable, but with a really cool forward kind of edge. 

So small things like that, that just kind of started registering and that um I've never forgotten. 

Donna Bishop: And do you still think of small details like as you're designing even now? Like it sounds like that's a bedrock value of Christopher Bates. 

Christopher Bates: Exactly. and Yeah. The details are really important. I think that's what differentiates, you know, my products and [00:08:00] my aesthetic from other brands. I start with the fabrics. First of all, that's a really important detail. Okay. 

And then I think, you know, what should this fabric become? Because I know now that I have experience, especially if I find a beautiful fabric, I'm like, oh, the drape of this, the feel, the weight, the functionality, this is going to be a trench coat. 

I just know immediately how it's going to look and feel like, I have an imagination. you know People have a photographic memory. I have a photographic imagination.

I can see things in full detail. So that's part of it. And then I don't like to have too many competing things going on. And I think that's where a lot of designers and brands get lost is like, oh, what if we add this? And what if we do this? And what if we do this? 

My philosophy is actually the opposite. And it's a famous quote by St. Antoine Exupéry, who said, Perfection is achieved not when there's nothing left to add, but when there's nothing left to [00:09:00] take away. 

Interesting. 

So that's my approach. And it's not automatically minimal. It doesn't necessarily mean minimalism, like classic Jill Sander or something, which I love. But it just means don't have too many competing elements. 

The details become really important and even smaller details. It can be something on the inside or the back, but it doesn't necessarily mean, you know, details that are in your face. 

So, yeah, the details are a big part of, you know, my consideration for everything I design. 

Donna Bishop: How did you decide, because you did education post-secondary in um in British Columbia, your liberal arts as well as a marketing degree, and then you went to Italy. 

Was that your only like destination? Like if I'm going to go study design, that's where it's going to be. Tell me about how your education has helped shape who you are and your brand. 

Christopher Bates: Yeah, um you know, when I graduated from high school, I didn't really know what I wanted to do [00:10:00] yet. So I just - I went to university, started taking all different types of classes that I was just interested in. I didn't really have a set plan. 

um So, you know, I ended up working towards a Bachelor of Arts degree and I graduated from UBC. And by that point, I really, really liked marketing and because you know it was a creative aspect of business. It was something that I was interested in and that I liked, and that seemed like a good career move.

So I went to BCIT, a great business school. I studied marketing communications. I really, you know, worked hard and was really into it. 

And then after graduating, I worked for a boutique marketing firm in Vancouver for five years. Now, this was still early s. So during this period was when I was traveling to Europe every summer and, you know, as my vacation. 

And, you know, it [00:11:00] was during that period when, you know, it all sort of dawned on me, you know, what I had mentors actually, and I know this is something that we're going to talk about, but I had mentors from a young age. And one of the questions they asked me was, if you can do anything and not fail, what would it be? 

Donna Bishop: Oh, that's a powerful question. 

Christopher Bates: It is, it's just, it's a different way of framing it. It's not just like, oh, if you could do anything, it's like, no, it's, there's more to it than that. So I really thought about that a lot. And, you know, it hit me like a lightning bolt. Like this was, I was working for the marketing firm, but I was, I was years old. had just got back from Europe and I'm thinking like, what do I want to do with my life? 

Do I want to do marketing? And the answer was no. And I knew that. And the next question was this, you know, if you could do anything and not fail, what would it be? For me, it was like a lightning bolt. It's like, you've always been, always wanted to be a designer, like be honest with yourself, right?[00:12:00] 

Yeah. 

And so I knew that's what I wanted to do. Although I didn't know how to sew, I didn't know how to make patterns and I was actually terrible at drawing by hand. I was terrible. So there were some hurdles to be overcome. 

Donna Bishop: It sounds like you were blessed with people in your life that encouraged you to trust your gut. 

Christopher Bates: Yeah, very lucky in that respect. and It's funny, like I remember telling people when I was serious that I wanted to do this, like, no, I'm, I'm moving to Milan to become a designer. Um, and my mentors were like not surprised at all.

And these are, you know, kind of old fashioned German people that we grew up with and, 

Yeah. 

I was like, oh, that's interesting that they weren't surprised. And it's like, no, they know me. They know, you know, how much Europe means to me and creativity and things like that. So they weren't surprised. 

ah My mom as well, super supportive. and I remember my boss at the [00:13:00] time from the marketing firm. And she was like, Christopher, that industry will eat you up and spit you out. 

And... And I said, okay, you know, thank you, Diane, you know, who, who I consider a dear friend and a mentor as well, like Russ, God rest her soul. She passed a couple years ago, but she was a really important person in my life. 

And listen, it is a really tough industry. So what she said isn't wrong, you know? 

For sure. 

yeah And I remember when I was starting out, I used to work with Adrian Fluvog, who's the son of John Fluvog. And we worked at the same bar when I was in university. 

And then I'm getting into fashion. So I call up Adrian. I'm like, hey, do you think I can talk to your dad sometime? I want to be a designer. So he very politely set up a meeting between me and his dad. And so John met me in Gastown in Vancouver. 

[00:14:00] And the first thing he said to me was, how brave are you? Donna Bishop: o 

Christopher Bates: And, and I said, John, I have no fear. and I'm brave, you know, I'm going to do, I'm going to do this. And, you know, he was, he was impressed, you know, with my, I guess, bravado or, or whatever it was, but, um, it's a really good question to ask. And, and it's something that, you know, now I speak with a lot of young people in the industry and, um,

you know, whenever they ask me about getting into it and doing what I do, I actually ask them that same question because it's like, you know, it is a really tough industry. And what I tell them is, you know, you have to be tougher. 

You have to be able to handle rejection. 

Yeah. 

You have to believe in yourself. and it's, it is, it is that tough. 

Donna Bishop: it it I mean, I think for so many creative industries, fashion certainly in particular, you need a core of self-belief. [00:15:00] that just will, you know, keep you steady no matter what challenges, because God knows there will be, you know, the valleys times more than the hills, than the peaks sometimes, you know. 

yeah 

And like, you're you're I just think you're so lucky to have had people to encourage you to develop that inner core of self-assurance. 

Christopher Bates: Yeah, you're right. i I would not be here where I am without, you know, the support of the people around me growing up, you know, the mentors and, you know, everyone it's, it's huge, you know, and I, I thank them. I mean, I tell them as well, so it's, you know, I really do appreciate it and you know I've used whatever knowledge that they've imparted to me, I've used it. 

Absolutely. 

And I think you know that's something that I hope you know they recognize and appreciate that you know they weren't wasting their time with me because I took it very seriously, even when I was a kid. And you know maybe I seemed [00:16:00] not so serious. I was. 

I just think it takes time for people to evolve. 

Donna Bishop: Absolutely. What does design school application look like for, you know, someone in their mid to late s with, as you said, you know, didn't know sewing, didn't know, wasn't a great sketcher.

Yeah. 

Like, how did you get from there into design school? Was it a fluke and it was just like one and done? Were there interviews? What was that process like for you? 

Christopher Bates: That's a good question. and i was intimidated to even apply to design school because i was so poor at drawing. You know I didn't have the typical skill set you need to enter the program. 

But a friend of mine who I used to work out with, he said, did you know that you can learn how to draw? And I said, no, I didn't actually know that. I always thought it was something people were born with or not. And I was not. 

Okay. And he's like, no, there's a book. It's called like drawing from [00:17:00] the right side of the brain or something. 

For real. 

And I'm like, okay, that's that's cool. 

Yeah. 

So I bought the book. I did a couple exercises, but honestly, I didn't dig into it too much. What that book gave me was at least the confidence that I could learn, okay? 

yeah 

So when I'm putting together my application, like I really played played up my background in graphic design because I had done some graphic design in school at BCIT. I did a program in that. 

And then part of my work with the marketing agency involved...

In this latest episode of FashionTalks host Donna Bishop talks with Myriam Maguire, President and Lead Designer of the award winning brand Maguire (founded in 2017). While the 2024 CAFA winner of Accessories Designer of the Year has focused on footwear, it is ever expanding its offerings into a wider range of accessories.

Donna and Myriam dive into:

• her story of launching the brand and what sparked her love of footwear
• unique strategies that resulted in a successful launch and growth, both creative and fiscal
• a peak behind the curtain of show production
• her take on consumer and business trends in this turbulent times

Maguire Shoes - @maguireshoes - www.magguireshoes.com

Donna Bishop - @thisisdonnab

FashionTalks - @fashiontalkspod

CAFA Awards - @cafawards

TRANSCRIPT:

Donna Bishop

Myriam, welcome to Fashion Talks. It's so wonderful to have you here today.

00:04.58

Myriam

Yeah, thank you for having me.

00:06.99

Donna Bishop

So I love to start with the same question, which is, when was the moment where you were aware that fashion had more power than just clothing that protected us from the elements? When did you realize that there was something more to it than that?

00:22.04

Myriam

I think like when I was in high school, like I was in high school in like the 90s and the early two thousand So the style was pretty conservative. It was kind of grunge, like a lot of navy, dark colors.

00:36.06

Donna Bishop

Okay.

00:36.03

Myriam

and the And then I was looking at magazines and I would see these fun like Mick 60 ads and like things that were really colorful. So I decided high school to wear zebra pants, even though it was like not on trend. It was not a thing.

00:51.52

Myriam

And then I realized that everyone was like confused and started looking at me differently. So I was like, and and then it kind of, I think ah kind of built my self-confidence that I was, I could wear something different and I can be any, anything I want, even though like there's like very, and and especially in the nineties and the 2000, it was like the style, there was like one or two style and that's it. You had to be part of a group.

01:17.75

Myriam

And I think not, being part of a group and being completely different, I think made made me realize that the the power of fashion and how you can like be anything you want, basically.

01:31.14

Donna Bishop

I love stories like that where we realize, like, to me, there's such a paradox where we realize that the power of fashion comes from being being different, but yet sometimes we're dressing to fit in. Like, I love feeling that, you know, that that tension between those two things.

01:46.66

Myriam

And I think there was, because there was like different group, but everyone would accept me in like my difference. They would be like, I wouldn't wear it, but it looks really good on you.

01:57.46

Myriam

Like that's what I would get in terms of comments. So I felt like it was nice to feel free to do whatever you want, basically.

02:01.31

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

02:06.83

Donna Bishop

And where did you grow up, Miriam? where did you yeah like Where did you go to school? What kind of kid were you when you were young?

02:12.46

Myriam

Yes, so I grew up in the and the suburb of Quebec City. So Quebec City is a really French town. and Growing up, like a lot of people in English class would say like, why are we learning English? We're never going to use it. That that was like the kind of thing.

02:29.37

Myriam

that people would say in my class and I was not really good in languages I was like I was kind of an average student that was really good in art and I was also in like swimming and I was also doing swimming competitions so I was like a I like to be competitive but I was also artistic so I think what I do today it's a combination of like competition and being really artistic. So I think it's, I'm still the same person that I was when I was young.

03:01.26

Donna Bishop

I love that ah there was an activeness in you. So obviously footwear, because you know if you're moving around, like that makes sense.

03:06.79

Myriam

Yep.

03:08.92

Donna Bishop

Have you always been ah interested in in shoes? Has that always been a part of your fashion story?

03:15.06

Myriam

Yeah, it was always, you know, when you're younger, you cannot afford a lot of clothes. So your parents will buy you a ah few things. And then I always love to have really special shoes because I felt they would like light up all my outfit. They would make all my outfits special.

03:31.49

Myriam

So I remember, I think when I was in sixth grade, again, no one was wearing anything eccentric, but I have like pewter metallic shoes that no one ever so saw. i think I got them at Le Château.

03:45.23

Myriam

and And then I was like super happy about that. So I think I always I was always into shoes. My mom told me I was choosing my shoes when I was four years old. So it was always a thing for me for some reason.

03:58.45

Donna Bishop

I mean, it's it's the whole Wizard of Oz thing, right? Like, you know, a pair of shoes is transportive, you know, in the fairy tales, but also in terms of it can take an outfit that might be quite classic and simple and, you know, add some sparkle and some noise and some color, right?

04:12.68

Myriam

Yep. Yep.

04:16.33

Donna Bishop

Where did you go after high school? what is your What was your educational track that got you to where you are?

04:22.27

Myriam

So basically when you know when you're 13, 14, you have a class and they ask you to choose what you're going to do when you grow up. So I went through the the entire book and I was looking, I was like, I want to be a shoe designer.

04:34.73

Myriam

And I went to like the the entire ah pamphlet, like it was like the different school and the different program.

04:41.24

Donna Bishop

Okay.

04:42.70

Myriam

And I couldn't find any shoe program. And then through research, I realized that a lot of shoe designers were trained as industrial designers. So that's why I, from when I was 19, I moved from Quebec City to Montreal to study four years in the industrial design at University of Montreal.

05:01.38

Myriam

And then I did a year at University of the Art in London to at a place called Cornwainer's. which is a school that specializes in shoes.

05:12.06

Myriam

And it's also where Jimmy Choo studied. So this is how I was able to find find it.

05:16.02

Donna Bishop

Oh, yeah.

05:17.23

Myriam

Because I had a book with different shoe designers. And I saw that he studied there. And at the time, I think the pounds was three times the Canadian dollar. And I wanted to do the three years BA.

05:29.32

Myriam

And my parents were like, we won't like remortgage our house for you to be able to go to London to study shoes.

05:33.92

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

05:37.20

Myriam

So that's why I did the first. And then by the time I graduated university, there was a one year program that was costing a lot less money. So I was able to like take a loan and do it for a year.

05:51.44

Myriam

So that's how I started.

05:54.12

Donna Bishop

And before we get to the to the birth of Maguire in 2017, what were you doing before then? when were you Where were you gathering your professional experience?

06:03.50

Myriam

So yeah, so after London, I applied to a place called Fabrica, which is a design research center based in Italy, close to Venice. And it was owned by a United Colour Benetton.

06:16.17

Myriam

So it was owned by a fashion brand, but they would basically pay for your flight ticket, your food, your rent, like they would pay for everything and give you a salary.

06:27.02

Myriam

And then you would just be an artist in residence. So I was, ah so I applied to do that. And I thought I would never get it. And I got in. So there was like, I think, 3000 application a year.

06:38.44

Myriam

And it would take around 30 to 40 people from all around the world in different fields. So I did that for a year. And then i also went to work at after that, I went to work at Aldo and I worked there for almost six years.

06:53.85

Myriam

So, so that's what I was doing. And it's where I learned most of my footwear, like knowledge and experience. It's really working at Aldo and I had the chance to be working with Aldo, the owner, because he's very, he's very involved in the product.

07:07.48

Donna Bishop

ah

07:10.13

Myriam

And I saw him two weeks ago and he was still doing product. He was still very involved with the samples. So, I think like I see myself in him in the fact that I also the product is what interests me the most.

07:25.02

Myriam

And I also work with his wife that was a buyer for Aldo in the 80s and the 90s. And so she taught me a lot about like buying and following the store and like rone rotating the stock and all these things.

07:41.68

Myriam

like knowledge that I never learned as like a designer so I learned like kind of the the business working with her and then I learned like all the factory side talking with the factories negotiating prices with Aldo and other I mean obviously other people that worked there for like many years so I had a really good there experience in footwear before starting my business

08:05.74

Donna Bishop

It sounds like you had almost like the perfect scenario of the creative education and then your professional career was like the the business part of the of the of the equation that you needed to be perfectly prepared to launch your own brand.

08:21.18

Myriam

Yeah, and like, it was not really my goal from the beginning working at Aldo. I was like, we'll see how things goes. And when I want change, maybe I go work somewhere else. Like, and it was not like clear that I wanted to start a business when I started working there.

08:37.78

Donna Bishop

When was the moment where you thought, I've got to start my own thing?

08:42.18

Myriam

So I worked at different departments at Aldo doing different things. I did material sourcing. I've worked for Little Burgundy where I learned a lot about the business and Little Burgundy was a smaller division. So I was able to touch to like a lot of different things.

08:58.11

Myriam

And so I did that. I did material sourcing in Asia and in Europe. Then I designed dress shoes for Aldo. And at some point I went in a division that would do private label for other ah companies.

09:14.76

Myriam

And then a i started doing shoes for Target and Tesco. Like they were a client.

09:21.55

Donna Bishop

Mm-hmm.

09:22.93

Myriam

But when I did that, the quality of the product was not the best. I mean, it was not super important, like the design and like the fashion part of it. It was more about like, can is this shoe like affordable and can sell to as many people as possible?

09:41.09

Myriam

so I feel like working in like super fast fashion, made me want to do like the exact opposite. So like instead of chasing for like the cheaper price and the most generic product that will fit to as many people as possible, I realized I wanted to do the opposite.

09:53.93

Donna Bishop

Thank you.

09:58.15

Myriam

So go in Europe where the quality is the highest. and not worry about how much things cost because I'm just going to like charge a fair price and be really being able to design something unique.

10:12.49

Myriam

and When you do big volume, there's not often colors. So you're going to do a black tan, off-white maybe. And i was like, okay, like, and then I did the opposite. I started doing really fun and special colors that you wouldn't see often, because I was able to produce in small quantities. So I did the exact opposite.

10:31.84

Myriam

So for a year, when while I was designing for these big brands, I was thinking about it. I was listening to podcasts about how to start a business. and they And then at some point I got a i got a bonus of $15,000 and I was like, that's it. Like have enough money to start a business.

10:52.40

Myriam

And it's funny when I told Aldo two weeks ago, he was like, yeah, I and i never thought you were going to start a business with $15,000. It might seem a lot for people that don't know, but with $15,000, I was able to buy one style in two colors.

11:09.24

Myriam

And that's it. And that's all you get.

11:11.14

Donna Bishop

Well, that's part of my next question is because, you know, it's one thing to start, like when I'm thinking of starting an apparel brand, like there's a certain amount of like, like the, the upfront investment is significant. But when I think of shoes, like that just feels like a completely different beast. Like how did you decide what your initial design was going to be?

11:32.11

Myriam

I think I had a friend that was working at the time in an iron factory in China. And he had like a lot of connection and they were working with a lot of iron brands.

11:43.40

Myriam

So they found, I think it was like the construction that was used by Common Project at the time. So like the same last or something like that.

11:51.62

Donna Bishop

Thank you.

11:52.03

Myriam

So we took this last and we designed a sneaker because we thought, okay, a sneaker, everyone need one but the thing is like it's very competitive to do a leather sneaker like we sold it really well because the design was unique there was a big velcro on top and it was really minimalist at the time it was super different but it's really hard to compete in the sneaker category because you're competing with nike rebook all these brands that do special collaboration for like a hundred dollar

12:23.82

Myriam

And when you produce in our iron factory, your sneakers have to be over $200 sometimes. so i So it's a hard category to compete at because people are used to get sneakers at $60, $70.

12:30.20

Donna Bishop

Okay.

12:37.84

Myriam

So it's hard to compete in that category. But we still started with that and it did well. And not long after we did a winter boot that also really helped the brand to grow. and Because like we're in Canada and winter is a big thing and people are ready to invest in winter products. So that's we did a Kickstarter that also brought a lot of money in to be able to start the bread.

13:03.36

Donna Bishop

Online shopping is something we are just so used to right now. Can you talk a little bit about what that landscape was like when you started? Because a D2C shoe company, we kind of take that as something that's so normal right now. But what was the climate like for that when you started?

13:21.36

Myriam

So when I started, Instagram was there already. it was already a thing. and And the so when I started working in shoes, there was no Instagram. And when you wanted to look for shoes, you had to go in person in different countries to look at the different collection.

13:39.06

Myriam

That's what we used to do before internet and before online shopping. So only when I started, only like a few brands at website in 2009. and And then that when we would look for like a red shoe, for example, we would enter it in Google red shoes. There would be like 15 pictures.

13:58.41

Myriam

Like now it's like endless.

13:58.91

Donna Bishop

um Imagine. Yeah.

14:00.36

Myriam

But at the time, it's like 15 people.

14:01.09

Donna Bishop

yeah

14:02.12

Myriam

Like we didn't have much. So we were doing a lot of real in real life shopping. But by the time I finished, Instagram was like there for a year or i maybe two, three years.

14:14.06

Myriam

So I could see that people started to sell via their Instagram. They were building brands with Instagram and you didn't have to do traditional wholesale because I was like, oh, I can't afford to do traditional wholesale because I don't have the money for all these samples. I don't have money for cash down. or I don't have like i have nothing to start a brand.

14:34.90

Myriam

but directly with the customer, it was something like Everlane just started and they were like the first one doing doing transparent pricing. And I was really inspired by that.

14:46.63

Myriam

So, so that's what inspired me. I was seeing like also Glossy was starting and I was, Oh, yeah.

14:52.19

Donna Bishop

Oh, sorry, Miriam. Sorry, you you froze there.

14:55.07

Myriam

Okay.

14:55.36

Donna Bishop

So we'll we'll edit it out. But can you go back to starting, like when you're talking about the the customer and Instagram, you froze for a couple of minutes.

14:57.39

Myriam

Okay.

15:01.99

Myriam

It should be better now because I saw you ah my partner just finished his call. so So it should be better.

15:07.35

Donna Bishop

No problem. but the

15:09.12

Myriam

And so, yeah. So when I, I'm just going to take a pause so you can edit.

15:16.85

Myriam

So when I started the business, I think like and Instagram was there for maybe two, three years. And I was starting to see direct consumer brands.

15:27.43

Myriam

So like Glossy was just starting Everlane with their transparent pricing was just starting. And I think these kind of direct consumer brand inspire me to start Maguire because I was like, okay,

15:35.94

Donna Bishop

yeah

15:38.99

Myriam

during ah Warby Parker did the the glasses. So it was at that time. And I was like, and I saw also Frank and Oak that was from Montreal that was doing a lot of online sale.

15:49.46

Myriam

And it was like booming at the time. And we had some friends in common.

15:53.09

Donna Bishop

are

15:53.58

Myriam

So yeah, And so that's why I was like, I was, there I was inspired by that. So, so I said, okay, no one is doing it in shoes and direct consumer model is, works really well for shoes because I would go to factory and see iron production at the same place than low end production.

16:15.28

Myriam

So I would be like, what's, what's the difference? So, And the price were the same. So it's just that some people...

On this episode of FashionTalks host Donna Bishop chats with designer Alan Anderson. Alan has been designing his eponymous line since 1997. His fashion history (and British Royals) knowledge is deep and vast. Alan and Donna discuss:

• how he began his line (an inspiration for anyone)
• the history and importance of costume jewelry
• the fascinating story of where he sources the vintage crystals he used in his designs
• his connection to Elizabeth Taylor
• the lost art of every day dressing up
• and more

Alan Anderson - @jewelsbyalan | alananderson.design

Donna Bishop - @thisisdonnab

FashionTalks - @fashiontalkspod

CAFA Awards - @cafawards

TRANSCRIPT:

00:01.27

Donna Bishop

Alan Anderson, it is so wonderful to have you here on Fashion Talks. Thanks for being here.

00:05.81

Alan

Thank you, Donna. Thank you for asking me.

00:08.02

Donna Bishop

And look at you in your beautiful atelier. I know we'll get into, you know, kind of your your work and all sorts of things about crystals and costume jewelry, but I love that you're in your workspace.

00:20.06

Donna Bishop

It's so nice to get peek behind the curtain that way.

00:21.36

Alan

I am. I'm actually in the workroom. The atelier, of course, is in this historic mansion on Jarvis Street in Toronto. And we we like to say it's one of the last Gilded Age mansions.

00:33.61

Alan

There's just this little stretch between Carleton and Isabella where we've they've saved these beautiful Victorian buildings.

00:34.83

Donna Bishop

Thank you.

00:40.33

Alan

So we've been here now. It's weird to say we've been in this space over two years and we just signed the new four-year lease, which is kind of exciting. And we're going to be expanding. We're actually renovating this summer to make the showroom bigger.

00:53.43

Alan

But the workspace is, this would have been one of the principal bedrooms in this beautiful house. This house is This half is 1891. The showroom half is 1897. It was built for Edward Blake, who was one of the first premiers of Ontario.

01:09.10

Alan

And it's Elliot Knox, one of the foremost Victorian architects in Toronto. And 1900, Jarvis Street was the most fashionable address in Canada, which is really funny to think. Like this was the Gilded Age show. This was the Gilded Age.

01:28.93

Alan

And then the history of this building is so intense because not only do I work in this room and I pulled the blinds down cause it's so sunny out. Um, but Ben Wicks, the famous cartoonist, we all grew up with Ben Wicks.

01:42.29

Alan

Be nice, clear your eyes for 20 years.

01:43.65

Donna Bishop

Absolutely.

01:46.21

Alan

This was Ben Wicks cartoon studio and where my work bench is in the window was where his cartoon bench was. And I've actually had people in the neighborhood that are old enough to remember him.

01:58.34

Alan

Say they used to look up and seeing him, seeing him, him drawing it as bench and they see me working. And I think that's so amazing. I will say it's the creative energy in this place. It pulses with amazing energy.

02:11.37

Donna Bishop

Well, and Gilded Age is such a perfect um aura to bring into your work, and we'll get into it. But first, I want to start a little more personal, because I love starting off with this question.

02:16.94

Alan

Absolutely.

02:22.72

Donna Bishop

i believe that all of us who love fashion, especially those of us who work in fashion, we have a moment when we realize that clothing and fashion is something that carries far more power than just protecting our bodies from the elements.

02:37.44

Donna Bishop

And I'm wondering what memory you have of that moment for yourself.

02:41.24

Alan

I can actually pinpoint my love affair with jewelry. And I guess this is that aha moment. So my mother's family, my mother was English, my mother's 97 in a nursing home and she had three sisters and all of her sisters were interesting and eccentric and funny, but my mother's oldest sister, Auntie Marie,

03:05.89

Alan

and you used to, we we, we, as kids, we went and back and forth between England and Canada. And I always say England's my second home, but Auntie Marie was the oldest, very strong, very clothes centric, glamorous into fashion and was lifelong friends with Norman Hartnell that designed all the queen's clothes and Auntie Marie loved jewelry.

03:30.60

Alan

And you know, the old, the old adage about put it on and take something off. Well, Auntie Marie would have added another piece. And as a kid, she used to always, every day of her life, she wore brooches and pearls and rings, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

03:47.36

Alan

And she wore 10 carat emerald on her hand that her and uncle Eric bought in Istanbul. And when I was a kid, they'd visit

03:56.73

Donna Bishop

wow

03:59.74

Alan

And she would always pull it off and let me play with this big emerald ring. And I was absolutely amazed by that and all of her other jewelry. And it's so funny because now, you know, as a 58 year old man, still every collection I make emerald.

04:18.95

Alan

And, you know, as you know, green is my favorite color. Emerald green is my favorite color. And I really think. And I think Auntie Marie, because I believe.

04:30.05

Alan

that had she not let me play with her jewelry, I don't think I would have been as turned on and as into it. And this, so there's, that's one story. Then the other story that's very funny, and it's just, it's, I think it's really foreshadowing of how your life is gonna be.

04:47.97

Alan

So when my mother was pregnant with me, um they were living in Montreal. And my mother, you know, like in and the 60s, everybody packed a little suitcase to go to the the hospital.

05:01.08

Alan

And the morning that she discovered that I was on route, um my father was terrible in crises. My father would always panic and meltdown in crises. And instead of picking up her suitcase that was packed to go to the hospital, he grabbed this train case that was on her dressing table and spilled all her costume jewelry.

05:19.03

Alan

across the floor of the bedroom en route to the hospital. And I laughed about that and said, well, if you didn't know that I was going to be into deciding jewelry, cusdy it's that's I love that story.

05:27.56

Donna Bishop

Destiny.

05:31.61

Donna Bishop

what kind of kid were you, Alan? Like, were you someone who, like, were you into fashion as a young person? Do you have that history of poring over fashion magazines, even, you know, as a, as a, like, pre-teenager even?

05:42.84

Alan

Yeah.

05:46.39

Alan

Catalogs, you know, we all grew up in the age of the catalog. which nobody even remembers anymore. The Simpsons catalogs, the Eatons catalogs that were like phone books. And I loved color. I've always loved color. And, you know, I have brown eyes, so I was always dressed in brown. and My late brother had blue eyes, so Andrew was always dressed in blue.

06:07.94

Alan

And I hated brown. and I always wanted color. So when did we got, you know, you get into your teens, my very first job was my paper route. And I remember my mother got so upset because I'd spent the entire summer cutting grass and weeding gardens and my paper route.

06:27.78

Alan

And I went out and I blew my, everything I had on a pair of Valley of Switzerland loafers, which is so funny. They were a huge brand. Valley of Switzerland was like the Rolls Royce of shoes in this going back into the seventies.

06:41.85

Alan

And Eaton's used to have a department called Timothy E. It was a young man's and I bought, a bright turquoise and green shirt.

06:53.12

Donna Bishop

Well, it's no surprise to me how you ended up working at B.B.

06:53.33

Alan

And

06:56.72

Donna Bishop

Bargoons if your love of fat of of color was a driving was a driving force.

07:00.30

Alan

yeah.

07:02.33

Donna Bishop

Was that one of your, it was another early profession, no?

07:02.70

Alan

Yeah.

07:05.78

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

07:05.94

Alan

Yeah. And it was BB Bargoons was one of the most fun, outrageous places to work. um we We still like the carpet that's in the showroom. I just, that I got this year,

07:17.84

Alan

ah My friend Amy works in the carpet industry and she worked at BB Bargoons. And my friend Scott, you met Scott at Christmas, was here. And we've all stayed in touch. We call ourselves Bargooners. And this is, we haven't worked there since 1993.

07:31.01

Alan

But it was ah the most creative environment. Everybody was prized for their creativity. It was social. It was fun. um It was the excess of the 80s and 90s. So when you were opening stores, I opened at least 10 BB Bargoons.

07:48.40

Alan

We had 24 corporate stores. I did all the windows for them. And there was never, you know, somebody saying you can't spend as much on the window. It was always, oh, it's fabulous. Let's do it.

08:01.13

Alan

And that's where I got a taste for textiles and fabrics and color and Passamontri trims. And so it's it's, I guess it's in my DNA.

08:11.15

Donna Bishop

Well, it sounds like even if fashion with a capital F wasn't something you were consciously seeking out, so much of the world that fashion exists in, in terms of color and creativity and texture and layering and possibility was very much a constant.

08:29.57

Alan

It was. And in high school, um i wanted to go to Ryerson, and which it was Ryerson then, ah TMU. I wanted to go to Ryerson and take fashion design.

08:40.96

Alan

And my father, being a very hard-headed Scotsman, was like, literally his words were, there's no bloody way a son of mine's designing bloody dresses. And they said no.

08:52.82

Alan

And if you, when I, like a couple of years ago i had to clean up mom's place before she went into a nursing home and i found things from high school and all through my high school there's sketches of dresses and i was a doodler and it's so funny that you know cyclically so i worked in the late 80s got my real estate license sold real estate for two years joined bb bargoons because i hated real estate worked at bb bargoons It unfortunately suffered in the early 90s and disappeared. And I moved to the Hudson's Bay, Queen Street, where I was there for over 15 years. And I was their senior technician with 26 people in a display department. And I built props and I've done windows and you name it, I've done it.

09:36.32

Alan

And here I am, you know, I started my jewelry business at nights and weekends while I was working at the Bay. I taught myself to build jewelry at my kitchen table and through flukes of how your life at the minute changes, um I got an opportunity to to do my very first trunk show at Holt Renfrew just because friend was wearing a brooch on her coat and the buyers were on the floor.

10:02.43

Alan

The great Pat DiBrato and debor Barbara Atkins were on the floor and they got my phone number from Evelyn and they brought me in and I did a trunk show over the holidays. So I would be working at the Bay all week, building the jewelry at night and weekends, getting it plated and then on the weekends over the holidays, every Saturday and Sunday, I would get dressed up and go up to Holt Renfrew, Blair street with Mary, the jewelry fairy, Mary Morgan, who's legendary. She has flaming red hair and glasses and she ran the jewelry department and I would sell jewelry on weekends. And that's how I started my first retail experiences as a designer. And, uh,

10:43.43

Alan

Then got an opportunity to show at when Robin Kay was doing fashion week down on King street in those tents, those amazing Toronto fashion weeks on King street that were. Unbelievably fabulous and international and what Toronto should have as a fashion week.

10:59.15

Alan

And, uh, I showed jewelry down there for a week and I wasn't able to take any time off to do it. And I took the plunge. My manager at the time, she wouldn't let me have the time off, even though I had the vacation.

11:12.14

Alan

So after 15 years, I quit. I just quit. That's it. And I said, this is an opportunity I can't miss. And I made enough through the experience to pay my rent for three months. And that's how my business started that and and a credit card.

11:27.38

Donna Bishop

I want to go back to the time when you are working your day job and also building your jewelry at night, because this is this is you know this is the moment of just push it forward, just do it.

11:40.23

Donna Bishop

What inspired you to buy the soldering iron and and teach yourself how to build?

11:48.00

Alan

Well, i have i have a ah very dear friend who's a mentor, a best friend. His name is Robert Sorrell. He lives in New York. And Robert Sorrell is sort of legendary in the jewelry world. In the 90s, he was doing all of the runway jewelry for Terry Mugler's Parisian couture shows.

12:06.01

Alan

Those big pagoda headpieces and the sea serpent bracelets and all that 90s excess Mugler that was so fabulous. And I met Robert through a fluke at a fundraiser.

12:18.00

Alan

I was sat next to him at a fundraiser in Buffalo. It was an AIDS fundraiser that we'd gone down for. And we started talking and I was going to be in New York the next month just for a trip.

12:32.10

Alan

And he said, you come to New York, you know, come over and see what I do. And he was very kind. I said, I'd love to. So I went to New York the next month and Robert took me to a wholesaler.

12:43.41

Alan

And he was going that day to pick up some stones he needed. And he said oh, you might find this interesting. So I went with him and I walked into this warehouse in the middle of Manhattan and an old office building packed with boxes of Chris to the point you heard them crunch underfoot as you walk beads and crystals. It was, and i was just gobsmacked and mesmerized by what was there.

13:09.72

Alan

And so at the time, It's so funny. You think this is going back and this is 1996. bought, I think there was like $1,300 room on my visa card and I maxed out my visa card and I bought a huge box that he had to set ship back to me with like UPS.

13:29.64

Alan

And I came and he also very kindly at his apartment showed me the soldering wand and the torch he used. And he literally said, well, this is how you do this and this and this and this. And I'm like a sponge. And he said, go home and play and have fun. So I came back to Toronto.

13:44.97

Donna Bishop

And what inspired, like you'd never built jewelry before. Like, was it just sort of a feeling that you had?

13:48.44

Alan

No.

13:50.18

Donna Bishop

Like, what were you thinking?

13:50.84

Alan

It's like, oh, I think I want to do that. I was like, I just think I want to do this. You know, um I always laugh. I'm the sort of person like in the in the early 90s, I needed a new couch. And instead of buying a new couch, I took my old couch apart.

14:05.33

Alan

used it as a pattern, bought the fabric from BB Bargoons and reupholstered it in the opposite. And it looked like it was professionally done. And I guess I have one of those brains that I can pick something up and think, how is this, you know, it's, it yeah, Donna, I don't know.

14:21.98

Alan

You know, it's, it's one of those weird things. So,

14:25.21

Donna Bishop

But you must have had a sense that it was possible, right? Like there was something, there was a little inner voice that was saying, you could do this.

14:28.53

Alan

well, it was possible.

14:32.94

Alan

Yeah. And the other thing is, and I think this is the freedom with what I do is I've never had anybody in a class say to me, you can't do that.

14:45.06

Alan

Nobody's ever given me a parameter to say, you can't do that. You can't do it this way. I've always had to figure out when you're building in 3d and three dimension, you have to figure out how does it move? How does it act? How does it feel? How does it sit?

14:59.35

Alan

You've worn my jewelry. You know how it sits and feels and it's flexible and it's fluid. So because I've never had anybody tell me no, I'm just it is.

15:09.66

Donna Bishop

which is very blessed.

15:11.69

Alan

So I've just played and experimented and learned and perfected my craft. and you know, there is that what's it called? It's um the 10,000 hour rule.

15:23.31

Donna Bishop

Mm-hmm.

15:23.49

Alan

That if you do something for 10,000 hours, you master that, whatever skill it is, if it's writing or whatever it is, baking. Well, I started doing this in 1997 was 1997 actually would be. And, uh, so when you think from 1997 till here we are 2025, probably done the 10,000 about seven, eight times working, you know, six, seven days a week, sometimes 12 hour days.

15:45.13

Alan

i've probably done the ten thousand hours about seven eight times working you know six seven days a week sometimes twelve hour days And you will learn, you learn.

15:54.34

Donna Bishop

what when did you When did you decide it was going to be a business?

15:56.08

Alan

i

15:58.78

Donna Bishop

Because I can hear the creative maker side of you like firing on all...

Hello and welcome to season five of FashionTalks. I am your host, Donna Bishop. I know it has been a minute, so thank you so much for joining me today. I'm so glad you're here.

I can think of no better guest than to launch this season than Jeanne Beker. Now, Jeannie's been on the podcast before. I'll link it down below. And we talked then about her 27 years as host of fashion television, which transformed the fashion media landscape.

Past episode with Jeanne:

SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/episode/59AYV2Pr1QbfDssPC5QnD7?si=nxfSt2MZT9upb_ROiIHo0w

APPLE PODCASTS: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/fashiontalks/id1271856693?i=1000623963957

Today, we are talking about her latest book and newest memoir, Heart on My Sleeve. It is full of intimate, funny, warm, always open and personal stories from all facets of her life and the articles of clothing that inspired them.

Transcript:

Donna Bishop

Jeannie Becker, it is so wonderful to have you here on Fashion Talks. Thank you so much for joining me.

00:06.49

Jeanne Beker

Well, thanks for inviting Always love talking with you, Donna.

00:10.41

Donna Bishop

oh my gosh, it's such a pleasure. So I always start with the same question and I'm quite delighted because I feel like given our conversation is going to be around your new book, the memoir, Heart on My Sleeve, I love to ask people, because I believe that all of us who love fashion, who work in fashion, have a moment when we realize that clothing, that fashion holds a power that is more than just protecting our bodies from the sun, the wind, the rain, the snow.

00:37.06

Donna Bishop

And I'm wondering if there's a moment where you remember harnessing or acknowledging that power.

00:44.05

Jeanne Beker

I mean, I think from my earliest memories as a little girl, you know, the the party dresses that I would wear, I mean, that that was always a big deal. ah you know That was the thing that you just look forward to the most.

00:57.02

Jeanne Beker

I mean, I know these days, lots of little girls have actual costumes that they wear, you know, like princess costumes and whatnot. I mean, it back in the day, for me, it was just those party dresses with the the crinolines and you know the taffeta dresses, organza dresses, the frills, the lace, the but little applique flowers.

01:05.04

Donna Bishop

Thank you.

01:18.40

Jeanne Beker

you know So I can't remember specifically there's ah this whole... you know batch of them that I that I have in my in my mind's eye right now but so specifically you know when that was you know I wore my first party dress but I always realized that you know yes that meant a special time and it was incredibly empowering because you just felt the most beautiful in that dress the most beautiful you'd ever seen yourself so definitely going back to my childhood birthday parties.

01:49.45

Donna Bishop

I love that. And of course, you talk about your 16th, your sweet 16 in the book, which is such a beautiful story.

01:52.69

Jeanne Beker

Hmm.

01:55.28

Donna Bishop

And I so loved reading your book, Jeannie. And like I told you, I actually listened to it while i I also read it. So it was so lovely to hear your voice sharing these stories.

02:02.53

Jeanne Beker

Hmm. Hmm.

02:05.15

Donna Bishop

And I couldn't help but wonder, you know what was your process doing this? Did you have diaries that you could um refer to? Or did you just sort of like meditate in in your closet and look at the things you wanted to focus on? How did you begin the process of putting the the book together?

02:22.51

Jeanne Beker

Well, I've always ah held on to certain pieces and some of them I've held on to for a long, long, long time. Some of them, sadly, you know, my mom threw out over the years. My mom, blame it on my mom.

02:34.10

Jeanne Beker

um

02:34.84

Donna Bishop

i blame it on my mom too. Don't we all lose things we wish we'd hung on to.

02:36.13

Jeanne Beker

So I, you know, some of these things I don't have, but many of them, like I do still have. um And I knew that this would be a ah wonderful template for the book as well, because it would um help me edit the stories that I was going to tell.

02:49.34

Jeanne Beker

You know, if I didn't have a ah special accessory or, a piece of clothing to go along with the story I just wouldn't tell that story but I'll save it for another book because there were a lot of great stories that I wanted to tell but you know you could only ah tell ah so many so I thought doing it through the lens of wardrobe would be really great and and I knew what those pieces were like I know about those pieces that I've held on to I need I thought about those pieces that really meant something to me and um and the stories associated with them

03:18.24

Donna Bishop

They felt very deep, like these are things that you didn't just pull out kind of superfluously, but you've been really steeped in them, given the relationships with either friends or designers or or colleagues. They're moments that really had impact in your life.

03:34.04

Jeanne Beker

Well, one of the directives from ah the publishing house, Simon & Schuster, when you know they approached me to do a book, was, um that you know and I had written a couple of memoirs already.

03:45.73

Jeanne Beker

you live long enough, you write a lot of memoirs.

03:45.91

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

03:48.18

Jeanne Beker

But this time around, you know, um they were saying, you know, you we believe that you've got a lot of... um life lessons under your belt. You know, we believe there's a lot of wisdom there that you could share. So I really did try to impart some kind of, you know, life lesson with each and every story. Some, you know, are more blatant than others, I guess.

04:09.34

Jeanne Beker

But ah that was something that was important to me too, you know, not just tell the story for the sake of telling the story, although, it you know, conjured up some wonderful imagery, but that, you know, what did I glean out of that experience?

04:20.02

Jeanne Beker

um And that's something that I really wanted to share.

04:23.28

Donna Bishop

And is that something that you talk about with, you know, your girls and your friends and whatnot as well as kind of like how how clothing has been a lens for lessons and other other experiences that you've had or is that something that stays a little more close to your heart and isn't so much uh

04:41.09

Jeanne Beker

Well, the clothes aren't necessarily, you know, ah um a lens for that, but the clothes are touchstones. other They're springboards for these stories. I mean, it's the stories themselves, obviously, that teach you something, um you know, but i do I think it's just all part of my DNA now. You know, it's just the way I see the world. I mean, it's not all, you know, like,

05:03.19

Jeanne Beker

and and I hate it, you know, I don't want to bite the hand that feeds me or be, you know, like, I mean, at the end of the day, fashion smash, fashion smashing, know, like it's the clothes aren't, um and the garments and the pieces of my wardrobe aren't, you know, what drive me and what I find the most passion um in But again, these are the, ah as as ah one writer had written, you know, that the wordless,

05:34.95

Jeanne Beker

Oh, I'm sorry. I'm trying to think of the quote I had my book. Oh, yeah. ah ah of The wordless witnesses to our lives.

05:38.93

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

05:42.42

Jeanne Beker

I mean, these are these are things that accompany us on all our adventures.

05:43.49

Donna Bishop

yeah

05:47.47

Jeanne Beker

You know, they're actually there. They're experiencing um the situation along with us. They're having the experience along with us, although, you know, ah and often they can really empower us.

06:01.02

Jeanne Beker

um in in wonderful ways. I mean, that's what we all love about fashion. And sometimes they make us feel not so great about ourselves. Like, oh, why did I wear that? I was sending the wrong message. It didn't really make me feel like I should have been feeling.

06:15.73

Jeanne Beker

so um yeah, I mean, it Costume, i to me, that's what it's all about because I started my career, you know, as an actress, teenage actress, um and really always loved theatrics of the fashion world and still do. And that's probably what I appreciate the most about it and the characters. And, you know, and it's it's so much about what people are wearing because that's just telegraphing such...

06:46.37

Jeanne Beker

huge messages about who we are, not only to others, but to ourselves. We learn a lot when we sit back and think of what wardrobe cho choices that we made um at certain points in our lives.

07:00.51

Donna Bishop

Well, and it's that sense of connection. and And I didn't want to be hyperbolic and try and put like more on clothing than, you know, their kind of anchor and emblematicness of who we are in moments and what we're experiencing. But I was struck by, you know, there is, they do connect us to each other. They can connect us to you know, deeper parts of ourselves sometimes when we feel like we need that little bit of oomph or extra something, then often an article of clothing can provide that.

07:26.37

Jeanne Beker

You do.

07:29.36

Donna Bishop

And, you know, often it's it's ah it's a beautiful way to feel seen by the other people in our lives. And I was thinking about that with so many of your stories about Taller and Margaret and Gilles and people where you feel seen because maybe they push us to, you know, wear something we may not have otherwise.

07:46.06

Jeanne Beker

who

07:49.46

Jeanne Beker

who Yeah, mean, these are all very personal choices at the end of the day.

07:50.69

Donna Bishop

And I couldn't help.

07:55.16

Jeanne Beker

We have such an intimate relationship with our wardrobes, for sure. But I just you know thought this could be a great way to um you know re-examine some of the wardrobe choices that we've made over the years and you know why we had a particular experience, maybe because of that.

08:15.94

Jeanne Beker

particular garment or what it, you know, what it told us about ourselves, you know, at the time and what it might be telling us about ourselves even now in retrospect.

08:18.69

Donna Bishop

what

08:28.54

Donna Bishop

Did you learn new things about yourself as you were writing the book where you reflected and kind of went, huh, didn't kind of realize that's what was happening at the time, but that's pretty cool.

08:37.05

Jeanne Beker

Yeah, I don't know. Not so much. i i This is something that I've just always been so aware of, um you know, and I live in a lot of those moments. It's not like, oh, yeah, that was a story that I totally forgot about and I'm going to tell it now.

08:52.41

Jeanne Beker

mean, these are stories that live with me. They're part of the way I see the world, like each and every one of them, you know, especially... ah Some of the close encounters that I've had that have, you know, kind of rocked me or changed me.

09:04.39

Jeanne Beker

I mean, I think, you know, the story that I tell about Iggy Pop and how that felt like such an embarrassing kind of disastrous ah experience at the time.

09:08.88

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

09:15.07

Jeanne Beker

um And then the the fact that it was played on YouTube and then my producer put it on our show, The New Music, and I was like cringing because like, oh, my God, people were like, you know, saying, ah, yeah, Jeannie Becker, who does she think she is?

09:15.60

Donna Bishop

but

09:28.34

Jeanne Beker

You know, great to see Iggy Pop put her down. But the fact that I shut down that interview, you know, and was just and walked out of the room um now in retrospect, I think, yeah, wow.

09:37.45

Donna Bishop

yeah

09:39.23

Jeanne Beker

Like I look at at that video and I think, geez, you know, I was only how old I might have been, like my early, early 30s. And, you know, i I had the balls to ah to do that.

09:50.47

Jeanne Beker

You know, I'm really proud of myself, you know, and I thought I handled that quite well, you know, at the time, so cringeworthy.

09:54.84

Donna Bishop

I'd say so. so

09:57.66

Jeanne Beker

But, um you know, in retrospect, it's yeah, okay. You know, like, I'm, you know, the the fact that I wore that little bikini with the black pom-poms on, the bikini top, you know, dancing on stage at the Toronto Pop Festival, for you know, that impromptu ah dance that I did at the invitation of of Ronnie Hawkins, you know, that, what what does that tell, you know, I wanted, I wanted attention, you know, but I kind of knew that about myself.

10:12.22

Donna Bishop

Yeah.

10:21.29

Jeanne Beker

It's not like, oh, I must have really wanted attention.

10:24.35

Donna Bishop

Yeah, yeah.

10:24.49

Jeanne Beker

Yeah, I mean, that was something that I always knew for some reason. I felt like I wanted to to be seen. And hopefully, um you know, what that's resulted in is the fact that I've been able to touch people um over the years, you know,

10:42.12

Jeanne Beker

and And that's been something that has obviously been my greatest, greatest joy, knowing that I can connect with people or people relate to me or they connected with me, you know, and they've watched me through my own, ah you know, life journey. And um it's the most meaningful thing of all.

11:01.16

Jeanne Beker

But.

11:01.40

Donna Bishop

Well, the the new music and fashion television were such lifelines for so many of us into, you know, culture and worlds and imagination and creativity that, you know, it was our only...

11:06.04

Jeanne Beker

Hmm.

11:11.87

Jeanne Beker

Yeah, possibility really.

11:14.28

Donna Bishop

oh absolutely.

11:15.84

Jeanne Beker

Yeah.

11:15.95

Donna Bishop

It's like even so many of the people, you know, I talk to here when we talk about like key influences, like your name comes up a lot, Jeannie Becker, like that fashion television was just a gateway that had never been available to us before.

11:29.14

Jeanne Beker

Yeah, it was really the first ah window onto that world. ah a very, you know, a rarefied kind of a place that people, you know, couldn't get into that was inaccessible unless you had a backstage pass or the right invitation or knew the right people.

11:44.69

Jeanne Beker

And we managed to, you know, get in there. Sometimes i had to elbow my way in and push my way in. um And it was wonderful to take viewers by the hand every week, you know, for 27 years and ah and expose all that, blow away, ah you know, some of the smoke and mirrors, try and to demystify the scene because I was very much, you know, in that world, but I was not of that world.

12:09.35

Jeanne Beker

I was like everybody else. You know, i was just this girl that, you know, grew up in Downsview, Ontario, you know, child of immigrant parents and somehow... managed to dream this big dream and and i went for it and ah you know so many of my fantasies were realized ah because i worked my butt off and you know a lot of it had to do with timing and the time in the media of certainly because you know the media has changed so much it's become something else now it's you know social media is totally kind of not i mean i love social media too but you know it's just kind of um

12:45.29

Donna Bishop

It's different.

12:46.12

Jeanne Beker

watered down a lot of the power of the media, the way ah we used to know it and and consume it. So, ah yeah, it's it's been an incredible um ah journey and um ah and and so many different factors were at play. Like, you know, i yes, timing, timing, timing.

13:09.71

Jeanne Beker

um And just the connections that I made with people and ah my my energy was kind of right for the time as well, maybe.

13:19.60

Donna Bishop

there were There were two chapters that kind of resonated with me as age-old kind of questions or or thoughts around around clothing and style. And one was your ah chapter with Keith richards Richards, where he is just you know cool personified.

13:34.67

Jeanne Beker

but

13:35.40

Donna Bishop

And it got me thinking about what comes first, the confidence to wear a certain thing, or when we put it on does it imbue us with that confidence that allows us to project that?

13:45.79

Jeanne Beker

Well, I think it depends. mean, you know, a little bit of both. It it just depends on how inspired we are to don a certain something or how much we really, you know, want to change or be transformed.

14:01.88

Jeanne Beker

And sometimes it does take a little bit of nerve to step out of our comfort zone and try something that we may not have tried before, try something bold that, you know, it's, know, might get a mixed reaction.

14:13.57

Donna Bishop

Thank you.

14:13.97

Jeanne Beker

um But on the other hand, sometimes it just feels like the most natural thing to do. And, you know, you're just, you're just ready for it. It's just a moment in time that you just, uh, embrace and go for it. And, you know, there's sometimes the consequences are you a little questionable. um you But, you know, you're as long as, you know, we're always being true to ourselves, I think that's the most we can really, you know, ask of ourselves, like, you know, just to be authentic and to, you And sometimes, yeah, we we get locked into these images of ourselves.

14:48.23

Jeanne Beker

um And we are reluctant to change. And, you know, and and we choose uniforms for ourselves sometimes. And, you know, we we wear a hair a certain way, because that's just the way we've always seen ourselves. And we're afraid to, you know.

15:01.64

Jeanne Beker

um But, yeah, I mean, it it it you just never know when you you know get the inspiration for ah change. And very often it's it's great.

15:12.02

Jeanne Beker

I mean, I don't see a lot of people going back to the way they were. Usually once they step out and they commit, um it's really got some wonderful transformative ah powers, that you the things that fashion does for us.

15:28.70

Donna Bishop

Yeah, I think it's such an an accessible way for us all to experience with having a little bit of guts, even if it's as simple as I always wear black and white and today I'm going to wear yellow or...

FashionTalks is back for season 5! Join host Donna Bishop as she chats with industry leaders and hot emerging talent about key insights they have learned, how they are got to where they are in life and career, and their love affair with clothes

This episode was released April 24, 2024

Presented with the CAFA Changemaker Award in 2023, Amber-Dawn Bear Robe is a curator, art historian and Fashion Show Program Director for the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts. Born in Alberta, Canada, and a member of the Siksika Nation, Bear Robe has spent her career working and lecturing in Native art institutions. Through her work and advocacy, she has played a pivotal role in the representation of Indigenous designers on a national platform. She has demonstrated profound dedication to empowering Indigenous talent, art, and design history and has set the stage for a more inclusive and culturally rich fashion landscape.

Presented with the CAFA Changemaker Award in 2023, Amber-Dawn Bear Robe is a curator, art historian and Fashion Show Program Director for the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts. Born in Alberta, Canada, and a member of the Siksika Nation, Bear Robe has spent her career working and lecturing in Native art institutions. Through her work and advocacy, she has played a pivotal role in the representation of Indigenous designers on a national platform. She has demonstrated profound dedication to empowering Indigenous talent, art, and design history and has set the stage for a more inclusive and culturally rich fashion landscape.

Vanja Vasic founded Fashion Art Toronto (intentionally called FAT) in 2005 making it the longest running fashion event in Toronto (Canada's largest city).

In this episode Vanja and Donna discuss:

• Vanja's history and how her artistic, rebellious parents helped shape her creative spirit
• the tie between fashion and art
• the "naughty" origins of Fashion Art Toronto
• key milestones throughout the past 18 years
• the importance of the runway show and why it is still the anchor of Fashion Art Toronto
• the surprising impact of Covid/ lockdowns and how it positively impacted the event

The next FAT is Nov 16 - 19, 2023 in Toronto, ON.

To learn more about Fashion Art Toronto - http://fashionarttoronto.ca/

On IG - https://www.instagram.com/fashionarttoronto/

Founder Vanja Vasic - https://www.instagram.com/_vanjavasic_/

Host Donna Bishop - https://thisisdonnab.ca/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/thisisdonnab/

Follow the podcast

IG - https://www.instagram.com/fashiontalkspod/

To learn more about CAFA - the Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards https://www.cafawards.ca/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/cafawards/

This episode was produced by Jason Perrier

IG - https://www.instagram.com/ajasonperrier/

Thank you to Nick Craine for the amazing artwork - https://www.nickcraine.com/

John Fluevog has been designing shoes since the 1970s. His unmistakeable footwear has graced not just runway shows around the world, but have been worn by countless celebrities including Madonna, Beyoncé and Lady Gaga.

George Clinton, known as Parliament known as Funkadelic, came to prominence in the 60s, revolutionized R&B music in the 70s and continues to make music with a host of artists including Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, LL Cook J and Drake (one of his latest).

Dame Zandra Rhodes has been a fashion designer for over 50 years and is the founder of the British Fashion and Textile Museum. She has dressed countless celebrities from Natalie Wood to Diana Ross to Freddy Mercury to Princess Diana.

Clinton and Rhodes were in Toronto to launch their latest Fluevog collaborations. Donna Bishop sat down with them in the flagship Fluevog store in Toronto to chat about:

• collaboration
• creative inspiration
• the importance of feelings
• and of course, shoes

To learn more about John Fluevog - https://www.fluevog.com/

To learn more about George Clinton - https://georgeclinton.com/

To learn more about Dame Zandra Rhodes - https://zandrarhodes.com/

Host Donna Bishop - https://thisisdonnab.ca/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/thisisdonnab/

Follow the podcast

IG - https://www.instagram.com/fashiontalkspod/

To learn more about CAFA - the Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards https://www.cafawards.ca/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/cafawards/

This episode was produced by Jason Perrier

IG - https://www.instagram.com/ajasonperrier/

Thank you to Nick Craine for the amazing artwork - https://www.nickcraine.com/

David Cash, founder of Cash Labs, has been identified by Vogue Magazine as the leading force in bringing web3 to market. David, the 2023 CAFA Innovation Award winner, is the founder of Metaverse Fashion Week and has worked with dozens of global brands from Farfetch to Estée Lauder to Verizon to the NBA.

In this episode David and host Donna Bishop discuss:

• David's journey to founding Cash Labs
• The origins of Metaverse Fashion Week (and what is that experience?)
• Breaking down Web3, AI, VR, Blockchain and other technologies
• How these technologies impact and are essential for anyone in fashion to be aware of and pay attention to
• Explaining how prevalent so much of this technology is already
• Why the gaming world is relevant right now and in the future
• Understanding the scope of the digital realm and why it matters in a broad sense (you may be surprised)
• Amazing advice for anyone working in fashion

To learn more about Cash Labs - https://www.cashlabs.io/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/cashlabs.io

David Cash - https://www.instagram.com/davidcash888/

Host Donna Bishop - https://thisisdonnab.ca/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/thisisdonnab/

Follow the podcast

IG - https://www.instagram.com/fashiontalkspod/

To learn more about CAFA - the Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards https://www.cafawards.ca/

IG - https://www.instagram.com/cafawards/

This episode was produced by Jason Perrier

IG - https://www.instagram.com/ajasonperrier/

Thank you to Nick Craine for the amazing artwork - https://www.nickcraine.com/