PHIPPS SS24 and Spencer Phipps Interview

I really appreciate how straightforward Phipps is; it's simply good, durable, quality clothing. It's just good clothes. The buzzword that we have heard in recent years in fashion is of course, sustainability. This notion has been used to reinvent many labels which is why Phipps was careful to not label outright that this is a sustainable collection, although it obviously is in the truest sense of the word. Sustainability through durability. Each one of these garments are made from high quality materials and are often sourced from deadstock inventory. This philosophy of repurposing and reusing quality materials is the true meaning of sustainable fashion. It's because of Spencer Phipp's deep respect for nature and his natural curiosity to the world that surrounds us he designs a very faithful collection for SS24.

How did you get started and fashion and why fashion?

I went to Parsons and got an internship at Marc Jacobs right after school and that was it. I stayed there for 7 years. [Actually], when I think back to it I was always weirdly fixated on clothing. I was very deliberate about things as a kid, like my shoes that I would wear, little outfits that I would put together. I was very meticulous about it. And then I think it was about middle school when I discovered [that] fashion went online a little bit, and there was Show Studio and all of a sudden Style.com became available and you were able to see runway shows.  I realized there was an industry. I was like, “Oh, this is a whole thing, I could probably do that.”  I was always creative and I knew I wanted to do something related to design and clothing. Just seemed like a nice, international community involved. I was…I was smitten. 

Tell me a little bit about who you're designing for, who is this person?

He's an American guy, really laid back…I would say it's myself to an extent or extension of myself, not that I need to wear everything. But, you know, I always think from the perspective of “Am I excited about it?” I created the label around my own story of where I'm from, the lifestyle that I live. So I think that it’s a really important thing for me to have that conversation. Be honest with myself, you know, and say if I'm not into something then I shouldn't be making it.

What has been your favorite collection to date? 

This one, honestly! I definitely feel more confident in it in the sense that I think this is really the first season that I've really locked in from a product point of view, from a merchandising perspective, price points, the categories that are available, and within that all of the design language that is very precise in each group. So, the denim speaks to the design details of the workwear, and it all ties back to the prints. Even with the rebrand that we've done for social media and the way we've shot the lookbook, [it] all speaks to itself in a very circular way. I'm now seeing when people walk into the showroom they immediately understand the brand. Whereas I think before some people might have [understood] but it was a little bit more vague or less focused.  I think that clarity really is something that feels exciting for me. 

What do you prioritize in your design process? 

One of the base concepts of the brand is responsibility, so that really informs what we can make. We couple that with the end usage of the products, which is a certain lifestyle, you know, we're not making evening gowns, we're making workwear denim, rugged daily products.  We're very limited in the materials that we can use and where we can find them. We work a lot with dead stock. [We] go to a lot of factory warehouses and see what they have sitting around, you can't go in there with preconceived notions because sometimes the thing that you want, they just don't have it. So you have to be open to the universe and once we discover what we have, we sit down and go, “Alright, well then what products can we make that are nice?”

Is there anything new that you’d like to explore in the future for this line? 

Yeah, well we started really developing our denim and workwear business and I think that is definitely worth exploring and expanding on. We've done a little bit of womenswear as well this season and that's maybe something to expand on. And even accessories. Actually, this is the first time we really properly developed [them]. I mean, it's very small, it's a couple bags, but I think there's a world where we can hone that a little bit more and develop it into a proper range.

If you weren't a fashion designer, what would you be doing?

I would probably live in the forest somewhere. Just disappear and go off grid.