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HERRERA
my French couturier in Venezuela.” Vreeland suggested she
take it to Martha, who offered windows. Herrera was about
to jump when a friend pointed out that she couldn’t; she had
not a piece to sell beyond the sample line. Still, she notes,
“Martha, queen of fashion at the moment, wanted to put some
dresses in the window. That was good.”
So, too, was her partnership with De Armas, through which
the business got established for real. They remained together
until he decided he wanted out of fashion. Together they sold
the company outright to Puig.
Simpler times, despite the learning curve. Now, like just about
everyone else in fashion, Herrera thinks the industry machine
has spun wantonly out of control. Too many shows, too many
seasons. “The client, the woman that buys,” Herrera muses,
“do you think they want to buy so much? Do you think they
need all that? Do you think they have time to think, ‘I need
something special that I don’t have?’ Or is it just more, ‘OK,
whatever?'”
She’s open to the rapidly trending concept of consumer-timed
shows — “it’s a good idea if we can again create some mystery”
— but sees potential creative pratfalls in having to make
production commitments in advance of the major-season
shows. “It’s very complicated,” she says, while acknowledging
it’s the way of today’s fashion world. “We have to accept it and
work it out in a way that works for everyone, for us, designers,
people who are the clients and for women who want to look
beautiful.” Despite the industry upheaval, Herrera still loves
her work, particularly working with her two youngest daughters.
“It’s fabulous,” she offers. “First of all, they don’t lie. A
lot of people are afraid to tell the truth.” Carolina works in
fragrance from her base in Madrid; Patricia, in the design
studio. “She’s like a thermometer,” Herrera maintains.
As the company grows, fragrance remains in the forefront of
the strategy. It brought Herrera together with Puig in the first
place, and remains highly successful. “Every designer should
have a scent,” Herrera says. “If it’s successful, it’s amazing. It
helps with everything. You are everywhere in a little bottle
that people buy.”
Another area close to her heart: bridal. The category has
plenty of challenges — MOBs at the top of the list. Having
been on both sides of that coin — mother to four brides and
designer to countless others — Herrera offers advice sprung
from that innate pragmatism. She urges bridal customers
to do their initial scouting on their own, unburdened of the
opinions of moms and other well-intentioned potential irritants.
Yet in the end, pragmatism takes a backseat to all of the
emotion concentrated in the symbolism of a wedding gown,
even to this most worldly professional. “I love bridal, always,”
Herrera says. “You know why I love it? Because it’s full of
hope and love.”
ARTICLE BY BRIDGET FOLEY
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