New Couture

Interview with Nadya Kojevnikova CEO of New Couture Showroom and Muriel Piaser Global Business Development & Fashion Consulting.

The market seems to be saturated with Ready to Wear, few lucky souls can afford the privilege of Haute Couture. so what is there for the rest of us, one may ask.

Don’t be heartbroken yet, a new fashion proposal just became available.  For those with taste for the good fabrics, handmade details such as embroidery, the New Couture showroom is an interesting proposition. In the elusive business of fashion, a new concept has been brewing, it’s called New Couture. It’s the brainchild of Nadya Kojevnikova and Muriel Piaser, together they represent some of the newest brands from, all over Europe and their client list keeps growing. During our coverage of Paris Fashion Week, Pret-a-Porter or as well called in the West, Ready to Wear, we had the opportunity to attend showroom dedicated to showcase the works of emerging designers from all over Europe.

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New Couture

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Interview with Nadya Kojevnikova CEO of New Couture Showroom and Muriel Piaser Global Business Development & Fashion Consulting.

Model wearing Ema Savahl for New Couture at Westin Vendome.  Image by Akin Abayomi. How is the trip to Paris? It’s the fourth season in Paris, its quite a new experience as far as location, this is the first time at Vendome which is a beautiful place.  We are very happy and we hope that our brands are happy, and as a matter of fact, we had 9 brands last season and this season it’s 30 brands. The move from Russia, are you trying to show the world what you have? Actually, I had 12 years as journalists and as a fashion producer for brands; I was doing fashion weeks in Milano, Paris, etc.

Paris it’s top of the top and everyone wants to be in Paris Nadya

How was the move from covering fashion to showing, it is as you were expecting it to be? No it’s not like I was expecting it.   I thought it has to be much more complicated to do business in fashion business in Paris, because it’s Paris, and, as you know, in Paris it’s top of the top and everyone wants to be in Paris. The market is overcrowded so many brands so many proposals but finally with the great help of Muriel and her great experience, we got such a progress in four seasons. I’m really surprised. I can’t even imagine with the times things are really complicated, many are going down but not us. With the current economic situation and political situation in Russia it’s just amazing to grow within all that.From the very beginning we started as international showroom. We tried working with eastern brands. Finally, we decided to do it more international, now we have more than 15 countries. Muriel, could you please tell us a little bit more about your role?Yes, I’m French, Ilive in Paris for a long time. I am very famous in the fashion industry because I was involved in the trade show for 15 years so I was who is next and also tranoi preview and I launched my company 4 years ago after the 15 years.  So I know the evolution of the market, I tral a lot so I launched my company in the business fashion consulting business, I help brands to develop the business, I met Nadya and we made a good connection, we are very complementary and she is also famous in her country so when she asked me some brands from her country wanted to come to Paris we analyzed the need and we launhed the concept. And every season we re-think the concept to make it stronger., every time, because we are always on the road, we are very passionate about the work and very people person, we are not just behind a desk,  I test the market. we do business pr, and we are here because we answer our personal challenge and we answer to the real request of the brands.

We are passionate about the work Muriel

When I was doing the trade shows, I could see what the problem was, they could see a lot of persons but sometimes nobody, just sometimes some contact but not very concret. So we launched the concept, we offer a physical place but we offer the consulting during the show but specifically after the show. It means that we work with them as a real team almost like a family, we build a relationship. What is the biggest challenge that you face?.  I think the biggest challenge is to bring buyers, we can promise the brands to bring network but we can not promise the brands the buyers to be realistic in the business. That’s why we developed the business consulting side so we can anticipate and analyse the collection and prepare for pricing and marketing. Basically, designers are more into designing and art and there are not into the business side, that is the biggest challenge in fashion. But when we succeed, it’s a beautiful thing.  It’s so hard for young brands to develop their business.  It’s not the beginning the most difficult, it’s after that, to survive.  When you beginning to deliver, when you beginning to produce sometimes you get ?7:10 Sometimes, we have to explain about the first collections, and that impatience because of the social network from their country, they think that they are stars in their country and in Reality is not like that, the business is global. We have to explain to them that the business is not like that, instant results etc.   We are passionate people and we work like this, in a close relationship with our clients and brands.

We have fast fashion and in between there are not a lot of things Muriel

What is the next step for the concept New Couture? We started as a small showroom, but now we closer to the trade show. Probably we are going in this direction.  Of course that depends on the brands that are with us, some of them have been with us for several seasons and we hope they stay.  I think it’s time to start a new trade show in Paris. This brand of products is very important for business. We have luxury, we have fast fashion and in between there are not a lot of things this range of products are interesting for buyers because they bring a concept, good fabrics, hard value, creativity . we have to develop that for this emerging talents but we different spirit.

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How is it, how do you see the small designers competing with big brands.  Nadya says, let me explain you, that was the concept because first of all, we were looking for the niche, nowdays with so many brands and so many proposals, our idea is to propose to the market what the French call   [prêt a couture] that is exactly what the buyers and people are looking for, because people are a little bit tired of big brands or maybe big prices but they still need good quality but lower prices more democratic and we are proposing just this because these new brands, some of them can provide very good quality and of course their prices.  We consolidated the basis. Dread: I am seeing more and more of these this kind of concept.

It’s very important to have a strategy for each client Muriel

In Europe, in France for example it’s common, we have the Men trade show is more focused on the designer more avant-garde basic but good. Good designer but not contemporary and this type of product was a little bit of frethful for the trade show organizer because it’s not the usual spirit of wearing clothes so that’s is why its important to bring another concept another offer to the market, because Paris is global, Paris is the capital of international fashion.  Of course there are some other events but our difference it’s that we offer our consulting services after the show and during the year. We work hard and we have a team, we help them in their strategy and their concept, their collection and pricing, that sort of thing. That’s the sort of job I do in the business and Nadya in the marketing communication.  We are very complementary; we travel a lot and seeing a lot of fashon weeks not just Paris or Milano a lot of emerging markets.

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How do you see emerging markets, i.e Amsterdam? Muriel, I have been to Amsterdam its another story. It’s more casual rtw. Its’s good for their market but they are not international, sometimes they concentrate on their own market and they don’t understand why can they develop, I think the main problem for them or anybody is to adapt to the international market and analyse things and that is why the strategy is very important in fashion nowdays. Before it was fashion for fashion but now because of the economy situation its very important to have a strategy where to go for each client, which products and which market. Everything is automate it, everything nowdays is online. How is fashion now compare to 15 years? Muriel,It’s a business it’s more fashion business, everything is link to business. Nadya, its more complicated today to find your place, your own niche . We help the brands become more international, less local minded. How is technology, is it helping you or hindering you. Good question, I think its also complementary like luxury and fast fashion. 20 years ago one may have said, “ It’s impossible, I’m luxury”  now you have to combine. We can not live without nothing can be very important to all the people, I always say I work all the time, I am not always on my phone and at them end it makes a difference. People remember you, Nadya, the personal touch is very important.  I remember when we just presented our concept the buyers came to see us and they were quite famous from Galleries Lafayette and others with Murie’s help of course, and they were so surprised because they noticed handmade details and they told us, about the embroidery, we never seen these for many years. We made the luxury details more democratic. We noticed because of Fast Fashion pushing the industry, everything is simple and cheaper. But that is why you need to have balance, you don’t have to be disconnected and that is a challenge. We educate sometimes, we communicate and spend time with the designers.