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Forbes

Business

Felicity Carter, Contributor

Priscilla Royer On Designing For Maison Michel, Chanel's Sister Brand

Established in 1936, Maison Michel has always showcased a special kind of savoir-faire, an accessories label that exudes a timelessness, yet is ever-evolving to suit a contemporary market. It is a Chanel-owned label after all, so this comes to no surprise.

And talking of contemporary, this is where Priscilla Royer, Maison Michel’s Creative Director comes into play. She has held the position since 2015 and as expected, she has her own interpretation of the brand aesthetic; t is interesting to note that she is apart of the famed Central Saint Martins alumni, so her designs are a little left of center but with the classical as a constant. Her pieces have strong personalities, feminine as well as masculine, and are for strong personalities. Here, innovative technologies as well as alternative cultural and historical references are offered in one hell of a stylish amalgamation.

What was your first fashionable memory? My first trip to London, I was 20 years old and I was with one of my sisters, we were walking around the city at night and we stopped in front of Vivienne Westwood shop, she took a picture of me with the VW metal signage right next to my face and without saying a word we both knew I would end up there at some point, 3 years later I was living in London and working as the Red Label designer at Vivienne Westwood.

What lured you into the industry? I liked the rhythm of it, working fast on silhouettes, going with your instinct … I liked the fact that you could choose to be whomever you want to be just by dressing up this way or that way…estheticism means a lot, the message is very clear and the sociology behind it makes it even more interesting, it’s like being able to read in minds.

Why headwear? It tells so much about your personality, it’s directly linked to your face and it shows the degree of love you have for yourself. As a little girl, dressing up was my favorite game, creating new characters, hats were a big part of this ceremony. I felt like a princess just by wearing a bowler hat, a tiara or a simple scarf wrapped around my head…

How would you sum up the brand aesthetic? A down to earth creativity that allows people to really embody/emphasize and incarnate the value they carry throughout their daily lifestyle. Also, impeccable quality, I work with an amazing atelier, they put care and love in everything they do…they fascinate me with their patience, they are the real hat experts.

Talk us through your process…I have a very animal approach when it comes to creativity…overprotective and territorial…don’t touch or I get pissed. I am like a white canvas and then I put myself in different characters that I could observe in society, in our clients, in the people I want to hat wear. I work from the floor so everything is laid down between hats, fabrics, details, photos, analyzes. It’s such a big mess that I am the only one to understand how to crack the code. I can leave it for a few days, while it’s processing in my mind… it becomes a melody, first very slow, heavy and dramatic, and when there s almost no time left before the due time to brief the teams, the hardcore beat starts, I quickly make the combinations that have been standing out for a while. It has to be very very fast and intuitive otherwise it’s forced and lead nowhere. Once it is clear, then I can share it with the Dvp team, and I am back to be nice and available again!

Do you have a favorite piece? I keep on evolving, my style goes with the flow of my life, right now I am very much into short brim hats, supple ones so that I can move around with it, shove it in my bag and not being scared to damage it.

What is on the mood board? I don’t really do mood boards, it’s on my phone and laptop. I only print the important images that the team might need to understand a detail/idea…

What are the greatest lessons learned when it comes to the industry? Creativity means nothing on its own, you need good and accurate craftsmanship to get the right products for the right consumers.