Danielle Guizio was a suburbs kid and she craved creativity. With an interest in fashion she went down a few routes before finding fashion design, and hey presto her label was established in 2014.
Here, she combines creativity with her penchant for rebellion (with a hint of the recent bygone), which is clearly seen through the combination of silhouettes, fabrication, prints and color palette. Oh and then there’s the noughties brand attitude.
At the heart of her label is the customer, but they’re more than customers, they’re like an extended group of pals – there’s just a lot of them, and they’re all around the world. One thing they have in common though, they all dance to the same Danielle Guizio beat.
A beat that has attracted over 30oK followers on Instagram and celeb wearers from Rosalia, Bella Hadid, Kaia Gerber, and Kendall Jenner to Celine Dion, naturally.
Felicity Carter: What was your first fashionable memory?
Danielle Guizio: I remember when I was very little asking my mom to teach me how to use a needle and thread, I would sew and glue beads onto my sleep t-shirts. Around the age 10, I remember looking through Limited Too catalogs and re-merchandising the catalogs to how I personally envisioned them. I would make a new “magazine” with paper and a binder and began cutting out and gluing the outfits from the catalog to how I felt they went better together.
FC: Tell us about your background – how and why you got into the industry…
DG: I’m originally from the suburbs about 15-20 minutes outside NYC. Growing up on the outskirts of the city, I was always longing for a bit more of a lively, creative atmosphere. I wanted to be surrounded around creative people who weren’t afraid to be themselves, who weren’t afraid to dress crazy or think outside the box and who listened to whatever music they wanted without fear of rejection or misunderstanding. A bit of rebellion always electrified me. I really loved high school but I didn’t necessarily fit in. I was always dressed in wild expressive outfits, I didn’t really look or dress like my classmates. I started going to shows and getting involved in the music scene outside of my small town where I was finally finding people who were interested in the same things I was. There’s something extremely refreshing at a young age to find friends that are exuding the same creative energy you’re longing for; it feels more like home. It feels like a safe place.
At 17, I was headed off to fashion school to study the business aspect of the industry. After leaving fashion school I began working sales in retail, taking on internships in PR and Marketing, and enrolling in psychology and business classes at community college. As I was trying to find my place in the industry, I was dabbling in a few different fields which I’m grateful for. My quest to determine my true passion helped me navigate through what I was actually interested in and what I was not, along with helping me find my strong suits and of course my downfalls (which now I look at as spaces to improve on rather than dismiss.)
FC: How would you sum up the aesthetic of your brand?
DG: I believe the aesthetic of my brand tells a story throughout my personal growth. My customers are growing up with me and I see how that reflects in my work. I feel very in tune with my consumer. I have a strong grasp of what they want and how they want to feel in the garments. I listen to their requests or critique and I try my best to make sure to work on those elements. My brand aesthetic is a nod to the rebellious woman or man who does not fear putting their sexuality on display and to push those boundaries. I’m essentially creating what I want to reach for in my own closet. I want to offer a lifestyle variation of pieces that portray sophistication and self-expression and freedom in the modern-day woman or man.
FC: What’s the most iconic ’80s / ’90s look to you?
DG: I’m heavily inspired by the 1980’s and 90’s. It was a time when women historically were breaking out of the norms and coming into sexier elements by showcasing their bodies as they chose to. They did so by wearing silhouettes that accentuated the female body. I believe Azzadine Alaïa, Vivienne Westwood, Gaultier, and Galliano to name a few paved the way for this wildly impactful epidemic through fashion. I also love how women began dressing like men, and men began dressing like women. There was a strong sense of freedom during those times that is still a formula that we follow today.
FC: Tell us about the process from design to production…
DG: First we begin to conceptualize the collection. I think of the story I want to be telling through it and what is personally exciting me/us in that current time and place. I start to list out what’s inspiring me and it can be anything from travel, music, whats going on in society, film, to vintage archives. I work with my assistant designers on bringing those ideas and vision to paper. We go through hundreds of designs and start our narrowing down process of which looks are most meaningful to us. Once we have our confirmed designs, the team starts on tech packs that will be handed off to our factories to begin the sampling process. The sampling process is by far the longest, because this means all of our ideas must be properly orchestrated from mind to physical object. Everything from the fabric feel, garment fit, stitching, hardware, design details must be executed properly for our customers and for us. We often times use Instagram as a tool to gauge insight of which pieces will be our biggest sellers by taking into consideration the reaction it had in likes or comments. Once we finally achieve our final prototypes, we then start placing orders through our factories and go directly into production. As we patiently await production, our team plans e-commerce shoots and all materials needed for the website to launch as soon as the product hits our warehouse.
FC: How would you like your label to evolve?
DG: I’m really excited for what is in store for us. Each season my team and I are improving and working our absolute hardest to make those improvements, which is extremely important to me. As the brand expands, I want to be sure that we are making those strides not just in success measures but in quality and customer care as well. And I of course want to see my brand expand even further worldwide. We are going to start introducing more categories such as footwear, eyewear and accessories. On the future horizon, I would love to see fragrance, makeup, or even home decor unfold.
See more from the label at www.danielleguiziony.com.
