In the tough world of fashion, a label has to be constantly challenging itself and growing. Elle Louise is the perfect example of this. We caught up with Elle Louise Creative Director Haley Niven to find out about this ever evolving label and what challenges she has faced to stay relevant in a competitive market.
We are loving your new direction! Why did you decided to re-brand and why did you decided to take a more trend driven approach to design?
Glad to hear you are loving the new direction we have taken. After building the Elle Louise brand up from the ground over the past 3 years I felt it was time to pull the collection in and unite under one umbrella. Previous collections have always been on trend yet had a much more eclectic approach. We felt we needed better flow to the collection that would move the brand from a niche to appealing to a broader selection of people.
Elle Louise has been around for 3 years. What challenges have you faced since starting the label?
Wow, well were do I start! Starting a business has been the most rewarding yet challenging experience of my life. I would say almost every new aspect of the business has had its own set of challenges. It is hard to say what challenges have been bigger than others as there are just so many.
The new Spring/Summer collection looks fantastic. Can you tell us what inspired the range?
TEXTURE was most definitely the main inspiration for our current Spring/ Summer collection. The collection was broken into two, with the monochrome sporty lux feel and the more feminine digital prints, in which texture was the main inspiration. We used fabrics such as mesh, neoprene, lace and briodery together with embellishments like fringing to add dimension.
Texture is very important in the new collection, with lace, mesh and neoprene adding some interesting dimensions to classic shapes. How do you go about selecting what fabrics to use?
I choose every fabric by its hand feel, as I believe not only does the fabric have to look great but it has to feel good on as well!
What challenges do you face when designing a new collection?
When designing every new collection I always go with my intuition. Sometimes I already have a strong idea of the direction or shapes the collection should go in and then other times I am inspired by the fabrics.
What’s the best advice you’ve received?
To make sure you smell the roses! In such a fast paced industry it’s easy to find yourself always looking ahead and never around at what you have worked so hard to create. I make sure I stop every now and again and appreciate where we have come from and what we have achieved so far.
What does a typical day entail for you?
The one things I absolutely love about my job is that the next day is never the same as the last. There is always new!
Who is the Elle Louise woman?
The Elle Louise women is a fun and playful. She uses fashion as a way to express herself and show the world her true personality!
Who would you love to see in Elle Louise?
Hmm, there are so many! But, if I had to pick one it would probably be Rihanna. Lets be honest she is smoking hot and likes to have fun with fashion!
What exciting things do you have planned for the next year?
We have just finished filming a very exciting web series with Jackie Gillies and La Máscara Beverage Co, which airs next year at the same time as The Real Housewives of Melbourne Season 2. We can’t wait for you all to see it!
You can shop the latest Elle Louise collection here.
