Ossou, a new RTW brand with luxe denim DNA, launches in New York City
Regarding American sportswear, nothing can deny the everlasting style of T-shirts and jeans. It is a closet staple look that prevails across all interpretations of style, not least of which is the chic set. Enter Ossou, a new ready-to-wear label founded by Fforme co-founder Nina Khosla and Talia Shuvalov, whose CV includes names such as Alexander McQueen and Alexander Wang, where she led creative direction across ready-to-wear, denim, accessories and jewelry. The duo are co-creative directors of the new brand, which borrows its name from the Latin word for bones. Fforme CEO Joey Laurenti also leads the new label.
Two years in the making, the concept was unveiled in New York City, where FashionNetwork.com spoke to the designers and the brand's CEO about reinventing the ubiquitous material into a high-end polished collection and expanding the design vocabulary for the humble material.
For Khosla, daughter of Sun Microsystems co-founder and tech billionaire Vinod Khosla, the exercise at hand was to answer a query: 'How do we elevate denim, and how do we answer the question of what luxury denim looks like that's still authentic and feels truly like denim?' Khosla posited, adding, 'Denim is very much the design of archetypes, right? So, we want details we design to live on and to keep living in the denim as we evolve and grow.'
Shuvalov pointed out exhibit A: custom-designed hardware such as the silver- and gold-tone button with a thumbprint design, created by industrial designer David Caon, used on pants and jackets. A chic custom zipper pull and bi-color zipper are also part of the brand's DNA. This tracks as Shuvalov also leads a jewelry line, Erede.
'The pants, jackets and everything we do come from a ready-to-wear place. They're tailored patterns with tailored construction details, just cut with denim as the material. The wash is minimal so that we can focus on the material. We're not trying to over-process because that's a big part of the denim sector,' Shuvalov explained.
'We looked from a luxury perspective but with materiality at the forefront, we focused on something durable with longevity to live with the wear throughout time. Denim is such a quintessentially American fabrication. What's beautiful about denim is that when worn and vintage, it holds intrinsic value, wears in and creates its own mark over time that lasts a lifetime. We wanted to give denim minimal treatment and wash,' Shuvalov added.
The line features silk indigo denim that drapes similarly to fabrics traditionally used for suiting; woven color wash as opposed to garment dyeing; tan denim with an essence of linen khaki on a pair of louche, drop-pocket barrel-leg pants; black denim so deep it is almost mistaken for wool. Oversize trench coats and medium car coats are cinched with exquisite quality leather belts with elongated straps. Auxiliary pieces include thick cotton T-shirts, crisp woven shirting and more traditional denim blue five-pocket styles and jean jackets.
Given the upscale designs and draping versus typical denim silhouettes, the collection offers a new proposition between jeans and tailored clothing. However, the timing for a new venture in a shaky economic environment due to political and social upheaval can be daunting.
Joey Laurenti, CEO, formerly of Sies Marjan and Opening Ceremony and founder of Good and Services, a now-shuttered wholesale showroom entity that merged with Tomorrow Ltd., identifies Ossou's target as 'the luxury consumer who is looking for foundational wardrobe pieces who is seeking items to pair back to designer pieces.' On the selling floor, Ossou aims to position next to Khaite, Loewe and Toteme. Retail prices range from $295 to $1,295.
'Everyone loves jeans and our price point speaks to a pretty broad audience. The brand straddles the line between true luxury and emerging designer — a sweet spot in my professional experience,' said the CEO.
The brand launched as DTC through its website but aims to build its wholesale business equally when it introduces itself to the market later in June. Retail partners are expected to be secured in the coming months.
Laurenti is matter-of-fact about the current dodgy nature of fashion and retail. 'Of course, we are in the middle of a difficult climate but there are always peaks and valleys and it's never a perfect time to launch a brand. Price value was always paramount when we developed the business plan for Ossou.
Ninety percent of the collection retails below $1,000 while the quality and sensibility could command much higher retail prices. We will have the opportunity to build a brand and scale it quickly as things pick up — as they always do.'
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