Often, we associate luxury with excess, frivolity. We imagine people on yachts over paying for basic items simply because money is no object. But really, and the fashion industry understands this better than any other, luxury can be for anyone who is informed and willing to spend more for something that is special. Luxury can be smart.
We were first introduced to Jia Li, an emerging and independent designer who started her own label over two years ago, when she approached Fashion’s Collective as an avid reader to see how we could help her grow her business. We immediately fell in love with her approach to design and placed orders for multiple pieces. Since different factors prevented us from formally working together, a friendship blossomed and we were happy to give some pointers (like to start a Tumblr).
Jia’s story is one that is unique; her collection incredibly impressive and, dare we say, smart. She somehow finds a way to fuse form, function and style in a way that is chic yet wearable. Probably most interesting is her commitment to versatility. And we don’t just mean that you can wear a piece from boardroom to cocktails to weekend…we mean that her pieces themselves can be reversed and converted to be worn in multiple different ways. An open cardigan can also be worn as a dress; a skirt doubles as a shoulder-bearing shirt; a wrap is also a vest. But the commitment extends past versatility to high quality knits, color combinations that are fresh and cuts that exude style.
When we asked her why the focus on versatility, Jia responded that “versatile clothing gives women more choices and styling options. It enables them to be efficient, to have less clutter. When you maximize the functionality of a piece by wearing it many ways, it’s more environmentally friendly because you need fewer pieces, which means less material is used”.
At a time when shoppers are more savvy than ever, using information as ammunition to guide their purchase decisions and carefully spending their dollars and cents on items that are special, having something that is wearable, affordable, high quality and beautiful sounds…smart. Many luxury shoppers count on buyers to find and source this special, emerging talent. Taking a trip to Barneys or Kirna Zabete isn’t only about finding trusted designers, it’s also about discovering new ones.
Reversible 2-colorway jacquard dress with flutter sleeve, suggested retail price $300
Convertible multi-way lace stitch dress/cardigan, suggested retail price $355
Reversible 2-colorway line-detail jacquard dress with 2-way neckline, suggested retail price $430
As a gift to our readers, Fashion’s Collective will be giving away one piece from the current Jia Collection! Submit your entry via email (info@fashionscollective.com), on our Facebook wall, or via Twitter using the hashtag #emergingdesigners! Winners will be announced this coming Friday!
Main image above: Reversible/convertible 2-colorway dress/cardigan, suggested retail price $488
