Jimmy Choo founder Tamara Mellon recently launched her first
foray in to clothing design with her very own label. Tamara decided from the
beginning that her line would be different. Instead of showing her collection
each season conventionally 6 months in advance at Fashion Week, Mellon had an
idea to only debut collections right before the season they would hit the store
- essentially allowing the buyer to purchase the new designs immediately after
viewing them for the first time.
This unusual approach makes perfect sense to Tamara, who has
grown bored of waiting for new season pieces to hit the
shelves: ''During my non-compete year, I was thinking about what to
do and it struck me that I was so sick of buying clothes in advance. I want to
buy something and wear it, not wait six months after the shows when I'm no
longer as excited about it. 'So my business model has no seasons - I
produce monthly collections that make sense. So in January when you're freezing
your arse off you can wear this cosy cashmere knit dress.''
Tamara may have already built herself an empire with Jimmy Choo
before she sold the company for millions but she says that launching her
fashion label was a scary experience for her. Commenting on how she felt the
launch went, Tamara revealed that she still had her doubts but she also found
the experience rewarding too and is glad she went through with it:''Launching
this label was as scary and daunting as it has been rewarding.''
