And so comes The Vanguard, Net-a-porter.com’s two-tier incubator programme which formalises its commitment to fledgling brands. Tier one highlights fresh talent, while tier two homes in on three to four brands per season in its accelerator scheme. This season Les Rêveries, Martinez, RŪH and Gu_de will receive marketing, buying and business mentorship; exclusive distribution on Net-a-porter.com; inclusion in the e-tailer’s most valuable promotional spots (homepage banners, on-site campaigns and emails); presence in both the showrooms, press events and lookbooks; and social media and #TheNETSET influencer campaigns. The main mission? To give fashion’s bright young things a 360-degree approach to building a successful and sustainable business that goes beyond design.
The Vanguard certainly ticks off industry buzzwords, but what sets it apart from the mentor schemes of its competitors? “This isn’t a prize or a contest, we have always been in the business of scouting and nurturing new talent,” von der Goltz asserts. “These brands haven’t just been chosen because they’re new, they’ve been selected because of the impact we believe they’re going to have on the fashion landscape.”
Net-a-porter.com’s customers are the driving force behind this desire to populate the “fashion landscape” with enterprising labels. “Support is clear from sales, our shoppers have an insatiable appetite for newness,” von der Goltz shares. Every time the platform launches a brand discovered at one of the fringe fashion weeks, be it Copenhagen, Tbilisi or Seoul, the customers come clicking in droves. “They love the fact that a name is unknown. They don’t just want to wear one designer head-to-toe, because it’s far more interesting to wear a mix of labels,” she continues. “We receive feedback from customers constantly telling us that they’re braver and more willing to experiment with new brands, because they trust that every piece we stock is of the highest quality.” The message has been received loud and clear: for autumn/winter 2018, 73 new brands will premiere on the site.
Only the chosen tier two labels, whose stars are firmly on the ascent, will have unprecedented access to the London-based tech hub and photo studios, and a hotline to the general manager all over the world, amongst other career-changing opportunities from the retail heavyweight. Vogue spoke exclusively to the brains behind Les Rêveries, Martinez, RŪH and Gu_de to get a glimpse into the challenges they currently face, and what sets them apart from the myriad of labels trying to break into the mainstream fashion scene.
RŪH
Only the chosen tier two labels, whose stars are firmly on the ascent, will have unprecedented access to the London-based tech hub and photo studios, and a hotline to the general manager all over the world, amongst other career-changing opportunities from the retail heavyweight. Vogue spoke exclusively to the brains behind Les Rêveries, Martinez, RŪH and Gu_de to get a glimpse into the challenges they currently face, and what sets them apart from the myriad of labels trying to break into the mainstream fashion scene.
RŪH
“We are looking to build a thoughtful and lasting womenswear brand at a transitional time in the fashion industry,” Sonia Trehan of RŪH tells Vogue. “Observing our culture of perpetual public exposure and flashy marketing and hype tactics, RŪH’s challenge has been to really understand how to make a conscious departure from the noise. We want to be around in 20 years – a strategy that’s increasingly difficult to play out in today’s fashion landscape.” Real self-expression, not something simply put together for social approval, is at the core of the brand and its artisanal, elegant designs. Trehan is looking to the RŪH woman – and now Net-a-porter.com – to guide the brand towards organic growth.
Souliers Martinez
Julien Martinez launched his eponymous shoe brand in 2017 after a trip to Alicante, where he was introduced to hand lacing – a technique now integral to his design process. “My brand is born from real passion,” he shares. “It is a tribute to the shoes my Spanish grandmother used to wear and her timeless Mediterranean elegance.” He has had to make versatility as central to his company as his Spanish inspiration and handcrafted Parisian techniques. “When you start a brand, you don’t have an infinite budget, so you can’t hire a lot of people. You have to be able to take care of the website, logo, photoshoots, social media and other creative aspects of the brand, while also controlling the marketing, accounting and finance, along with building relationships with clients and industry partners.” The Vanguard, he hopes, will establish a link between Martinez’s handcrafted aesthetic and an international business model.
Les Rêveries
“We want to make the best product, but reacting quickly to market demands within a small operation can be very challenging,” Wayne and Ai, the two sisters behind Les Rêveries, note. “We believe in femininity, softness, floral blooms, gardens and poetry, and, for the most part, we design all of our prints so the collections are all unique,” the duo continues. “We also select from the best sources of silks and other fabrications making the quality of a garment our highest goal”. For a brand based on love and daydreams Les Rêveries has made a splash amongst the fashion set already. They are looking forward to letting Net-a-porter.com harness their imagination.
Gu_de
“Everything has changed very quickly in Seoul. Our domestic customers are very sensitive to trends on one hand, but are seeking something different on the other hand,” South Korea-based founder Ji Hye Koo tells Vogue. Her customers’ thirst for newness is what drives her to keep innovating, but, she asserts, “no one tells you how many things there are to consider. I was expecting to be able to just design, but there are many departments to consider such as production, creative, marketing and the business side of building a brand.” Working closely with the extensive Net-a-porter.com team will help her join these dots, while staying true to the core of Gu_de, which takes its name from an antiquarian Scottish pronunciation of “good”.
Souliers Martinez
Julien Martinez launched his eponymous shoe brand in 2017 after a trip to Alicante, where he was introduced to hand lacing – a technique now integral to his design process. “My brand is born from real passion,” he shares. “It is a tribute to the shoes my Spanish grandmother used to wear and her timeless Mediterranean elegance.” He has had to make versatility as central to his company as his Spanish inspiration and handcrafted Parisian techniques. “When you start a brand, you don’t have an infinite budget, so you can’t hire a lot of people. You have to be able to take care of the website, logo, photoshoots, social media and other creative aspects of the brand, while also controlling the marketing, accounting and finance, along with building relationships with clients and industry partners.” The Vanguard, he hopes, will establish a link between Martinez’s handcrafted aesthetic and an international business model.
Les Rêveries
“We want to make the best product, but reacting quickly to market demands within a small operation can be very challenging,” Wayne and Ai, the two sisters behind Les Rêveries, note. “We believe in femininity, softness, floral blooms, gardens and poetry, and, for the most part, we design all of our prints so the collections are all unique,” the duo continues. “We also select from the best sources of silks and other fabrications making the quality of a garment our highest goal”. For a brand based on love and daydreams Les Rêveries has made a splash amongst the fashion set already. They are looking forward to letting Net-a-porter.com harness their imagination.
Gu_de
“Everything has changed very quickly in Seoul. Our domestic customers are very sensitive to trends on one hand, but are seeking something different on the other hand,” South Korea-based founder Ji Hye Koo tells Vogue. Her customers’ thirst for newness is what drives her to keep innovating, but, she asserts, “no one tells you how many things there are to consider. I was expecting to be able to just design, but there are many departments to consider such as production, creative, marketing and the business side of building a brand.” Working closely with the extensive Net-a-porter.com team will help her join these dots, while staying true to the core of Gu_de, which takes its name from an antiquarian Scottish pronunciation of “good”.
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