Unbiased design duo Victoria Feldman and Tomas Berzins discontinue Victoria/Tomas label and deal with artistic collaborations
In response to insider info, impartial designers Victoria Feldman and Tomas Berzins have determined to finish the exercise of their Victoria/Tomas model. The pair, who’ve proven recurrently at Paris Style Week since 2017, will shift their focus towards collaboration and different design tasks sooner or later. They’ve additionally made the choice to shut their Paris atelier.
Feldman and Berzins attribute this choice to market forces and their need to maneuver from managing every day operations to artistic explorations. The Victoria/Tomas model, based in 2012, was stocked worldwide by Neiman Marcus, Harvey Nichols, Le Bon Marché and boutique retailers such because the eminent Colette.
The duo based the model proper out of trend college and subsequently grew to become finalists on the Hyères Worldwide Style and Images Competition the next 12 months. The model shortly gained renown for its progressive choices, such because the reversible clothes idea launched in 2020.
After the pandemic, Feldman and Berzins observed a dramatic change within the enterprise local weather with a rise in retail closures. “To be sincere, enterprise slowed down lots, particularly after COVID-19,” Berzins mentioned. “We felt the wholesale value was coming down, slowly however steadily.” The contraction of the wholesale market dealt a extreme blow to its monetary well being.
“The business has had many modifications, unfavourable modifications, beginning with wholesale commerce. [business], the place from the start we targeted primarily on our enterprise,” defined Berzins. “When the massive shops shut, or [filing for] Within the occasion of chapter, they can’t be simply changed.”
With the onset of the pandemic, the corporate misplaced 70 % of its turnover on account of order cancellations and retailer closures. Within the following years, they witnessed the everlasting closure of about 50 shops with which that they had enterprise relationships.
“This actually affected billing,” Berzins shared. “We managed to outlive many, many seasons after COVID-19, however we reached some extent the place we mentioned, 'Is it wholesome to do this?' We need to do many, many issues. “We’ve quite a lot of concepts, however when you’ve this type of market weight, you break down and you’re now not passionate.”
Regardless of these challenges, the duo stays optimistic and can channel their creativity into design and product growth collaborations with current manufacturers. They’ve already had a profitable partnership with the perfume model Caron, designing a case to move the home's fragrance bottles.
Berzins expressed his openness to all forms of artistic collaborations, together with sportswear or excessive avenue manufacturers, commenting: “We don't have any limits, we don't have any taboos about the place we are able to or can't work. It's only a matter of becoming with our imaginative and prescient and with a human facet. [including] the group.”
“We’re very motivated and look very positively in direction of the long run. “We will’t wait for brand spanking new adventures,” Feldman added.