S14 E08: Gilles Mendel, Fashion Designer and Co-Founder of House of Gilles

[Music] You're listening to the luxury item, the podcast on the business of luxury and the people and companies that are shaping the future of the luxury industry. Here's your host, Scott Kerr. My guest on the luxury item podcast is world famous fashion designer, Giel Mendel, who recently launched a new business venture, House of Giel, a couture Italian founded by Giel and his daughter, Chloe Mendel, a fashion designer in her own right who co-founded luxury out-of-wear brand, Maison Atia. Giel and Chloe are fifth and sixth generation descendants of the J-Mendel Global Luxury Fashion Empire, who for 150 years has handcrafted fashion for royalty, celebrity aristocracy, and the ultra wealthy. The father-daughter duo have set out to be the premier New York City destination for Oat Couture, Bridal and Custom. Giel Mendel, a renowned figure in the fashion world with over four decades of experience in Oat Couture and luxury ready to wear. Prior to starting House of Giel, he was at the helm as designer and CEO of J-Mendel since 1981, known for combining the highest quality materials and impeccable craftsmanship with a modern award-winning design sensibility, Giel evolved the company from a luxury fur atelier to a full-fledged global luxury fashion house. His design talent has attracted a distinguished clientele, including celebrities like Taylor Swift, Sarah Jessica Parker and Gwyneth Paltrow, and earned him numerous awards, including the Couture Council Award for Artistry of Fashion and Membership in the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Welcome to the luxury item, Giel. Thank you. Happy to be here. I'm so excited to have you on the show. You know, I had your daughter, Chloe, on the show back in 2021. You and Chloe are fifth and sixth generation descendants of the J-Mendel fashion empire. Giel, you've been a renowned figure in the fashion world for more than three decades in Oat Couture and luxury ready to wear. Now both of you have joined forces on your newest atelier House of Giel. How did this dynamic duo venture come about? And the shared vision you both had about a business opportunity. Well, you know, House of Giel came really about very organically, I would say, you know, you know, after decades in the industry, you know, I felt it was time to return to something more personal, you know, where I could focus purely more on craftsmanship and the clients, free from really constrained of the large corporate structures. Having Chloe, you know, with me was kind of a natural extension of what, you know, my family is all about, you know, it was transmitting, you know, the artistry, know how all the love of the work that we've been putting through all these generations to the next generation. So having Chloe brought, you know, fresh perspective, you know, maybe, you know, modern energy to the whole new operation. And really a deep understanding of today's clients experience, you know. So together, you know, we envisioned a maison where Couture feels intimate again, you know, where custom intentional and it feels intentional and more deeply rooted to the artistry of the house. And in September last year on the first day of New York Fashion Week, you and Chloe presented your debut House of Giel Couture collection at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. You had already spent months immersed in the world of New York City Ballet designing costumes for dancers performing in the New York City Ballet. Fall Fashion Gala. That was happening the following month, which we'll talk about shortly. It had been a while since you presented at New York Fashion Week. Talk about the debut of collection 02 and it, as it's called, and the point of view that you and Chloe wanted to convey about the House of Giel brand. Presenting your collection at Lincoln Center during Fashion Week was really a full circle moment because I, as you know, I've been, I mean, it was a fabulous obviously experience for me to be associated with the ballet and having this opportunity to present the collection also at the Lincoln Center, you know, brought really, you know, millions of ex-- I mean, lots of inspiration to me in the design of the collection, bringing really that's, you know, because I love, I mean, I obviously I love working with the ballet. You know, these, I mean, dancers are to me the ultimate inspiration, the movement, the athleticism, the beauty, the grace, all this put together into one, into that, into a gown or a dress, you know, is a dream for me and it's such a different experience than doing just fashion in general, you know, for, you know, on a regular basis. So the collection was inspired by the ballet for sure. It was all about softness and strength and really celebrating the femininity with, you know, that structure and lightness. I mean, I was very fortunate enough to, you know, to share this collection with also, you know, the Vogue 100 of, you know, for a beautiful event taking place, you know, in the ballet itself, in the scene of the ballet. And, you know, the campaign of the, of the, of the imagery of that collection, you know, was done by a dear friend of mine, you know, Ruben Affanador and, a, no friend also of mine, a supermodel Christina Cruz. So it was kind of combining the aesthetic of dance within the culture, you know, the artistry, the, and showcasing, you know, the artistry and in the, the craftsmanship of my new atelier. And the story of Jay Mendel is kind of a fashion fairy tale. It was founded in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1870 by Joseph Mendel, your great-grandfather, who was a furrier to the House of Romanov. And the Mendel family moved to Paris in the 1920s, occupying a central position in Parisian culture for much of the 20th century, building its international reputation in fashionable furs. And continued into the 21st century with you as the head designer, expanding into ready to wear and other categories, making the House of Jay Mendel a red carpet favorite among international royalty and Hollywood stars alike. You turn Jay Mendel into a full-fledged global luxury house. Today, you and your daughter Chloe have embarked on a new journey creating elegant couture, level collection and made to order pieces. And then, you know, you're getting a piece in the New York Times on Jay Mendel and it said, "Change has always been in the DNA of Jay Mendel. Does this description ring true to you?" For sure. I mean, you know, it's about reinventing yourself constantly, you know. The, the base of, I mean, what has been successful and is basically the, you know, the foundation of the, of the House of, of Mandel from my great-grandfather, which is, you know, believing strongly in the world. And then, you know, it's probably in the craftsmanship on the super high quality in the, you know, in the love and the, on the making of the garment, like, you know, the philosophy that, you know, it's, you know, it's as important to look at the inside of the garment and the outside, the making of the garment is so essential. And then, you know, the pride in making something, which is really has translated through generations. This has been really the foundation for me where I am today. The innovation was, of course, going from, you know, of tradition of fur to making couture. And, you know, it's a lot of similarities. You know, if you saw my grandfather, my great-grandfather, my grandfather, even my dad working in Paris in his atelier, if you saw him nailing skins, you know, stretching skins on a, on a board. It was kind of a, it was looking at the architecture of Versailles. I mean, nearly it was so beautiful. It was down the artistry, but also the, the, the, the manual aspect of it. I mean, he had basically an old tool that was given by his father and even his grandfather, which was a little hammer to, to, to, to, to, to put every nails, you know, on the skins. I mean, it was, it was nailing on a board. And it was like so beautiful. It was, it was extraordinary. And it was, you know, he knew. So I feel it's the same thing when you do it when we try today to do couture in the atelier. It's a, you know, it's a craft. It's patience, but it's also delicate. You know, how delicate the work is, how much, you know, the people that are making each piece are so proud. And I don't know, there's a, you have to come one day and visit. It's really. And your new atelier offers several different services. One of them is a couture. What's the difference now about your approach to couture and the way you work with clients on bespoke projects? Well, you know, it's, when the client works in our, in our atelier, you know, it's not about trends or, you know, fast fashion at all. You know, we sit, we sketch. I talk about the client's life. She, you know, she talks about her life, you know, her stories. You know, we take measurements of her, but then, you know, we, we try to, we, we, I bring because it's all about the personal approach between you and I, we bring to the client. You know, that experience, we let her navigate into a world where everything is possible. But it's also an understanding of her, you know, what she's looking for, understanding, you know, maybe she had thoughts. We make a discover maybe things that she had never thought about about herself. And that's what's so exciting. There's no limits in one we can provide to that customer and the experience. You know, she is really fun. Generally, when we start with the client, well, you know, after listening to what she's looking for, we generally would like to see her, what she wears, what she's tried, maybe from different places. But mostly it's mostly to look at her wardrobe so far, which has been wearing, because it gives you a sense of where she feels confident, or at this which has been liking about herself so far. The beauty is that I challenge them all the time, by maybe showing that maybe a little bit of a decalty, slightly showing more shoulder, maybe it's back, maybe it's a little detail that suddenly makes everything more extraordinary. And you have no idea how emotional it gets, because the client feels, you know, she's really rediscovering herself, and it's fun. It's really an exciting thing that I can provide to them. - So where does the Mendel's signature style come into play? - Well, you know, I always love to make dresses, or to design dresses that are very feminine, very ethereal, like feeling always that, you know, those dresses come, maybe from a, they are like modern heirloom, like they came from, you discover them in the addings somewhere, they're less. I think that's something that I always, I'm proud to always try to express through my work. The second thing is a magic of the elderly, making unbelievable underpinning, and bustiers, and pedicodes, and things that make the woman feel very, very secure, but at the same time, feels very feminine and kind of a little bit vulnerable in some ways, you know. The magic that's been through the years of dressing celebrities through the red carpet is to try to make them feel in a way very feminine and very open, but at the same time, nothing is really, nothing that should not be shown shows, basically. - So it's no secret that millennials and Gen Z have exercised their powerful influence on the luxury fashion industry for some time now, breaking down dress codes and influencing hybrid high-low styles of dressing, and it's been clear they are increasing the demand for bespoke personalised experiences. Have you been finding a younger couture or clientele emerging? - Yes, definitely. This is, you know, the youth younger clients really are looking for those experiences. I think that when you bring that caliber of, that level of quality and craftsmanship, you know, there is an appreciation that goes through all the ages. How are their tastes in couture different than older generations? - I think the young generation obviously is more adventurous, but also, you know, their body being young, you know, they are, there is more freedom in the design of the clothes on them. They are fearless, which I love. It gives you really a sense of freedom when you design for them. It's a lot of fun. This new generation, you know, is so much eager to taste that kind of level of craftsmanship. They are, they are really appreciative to this world that they absolutely do not know, but also the end of standard, because, you know, there is no secret. If you touch the fabric, if you feel the movement, if you see a hand-plated skirt done, you know, in an organza that comes from a Europe, in an amazing meal, I tell you, there is no generation, there is no language, there is no, you could feel it, and you know it's extraordinary, it feels special, and it drives differently, and I think that generation feels it, understands it. - And, yeah, and Brightel is also an important part of your business. The Brightelware market has shown consistent growth in the post-pandemic period. The one that's in the midst of a modern upheaval with younger generations, as we're talking about, that approach weddings completely differently. Brightel has become a highly competitive and lucrative business. How does House of Gilles position itself to a client that's different from the other know-it-able studios in fashion houses? - Brightel is a very important part of our business. I mean, it came also very organically, as you know, a year ago, I mean, I've done Brightel. - Yeah. - I've, the question is, now we're doing more important pieces and more important brides. I mean, in sense of, you know, the Brightel business has become a big, culture factor part of my end of the business here at House of Gilles. You know, it's a very special gown. It's, there's a lot of emotion, a lot of efforts in the experience, but I would say it's becoming now a big part of our business. And it's a natural extension of the culture collection that I present. - I was reading that entire wedding war droves have been a thing, dressing in multiple outfits for showers, bachelorette parties, welcome parties, and after parties, are you getting requests for that too? - Yes, I think more and more women wants to have, you know, complete war drob, and we do that for them. Yes, we do. - In a recent interview, you said, "In a way, I am kind of an artisan. My dad was an artisan. My grandfather was an artisan. There were people who worked with their hands and taught you the inside of a garment is beautiful as is beautiful as the outside. I have a certain pride in the making, and I think I transmitted that to Chloe. Since the beginning of this decade, it seems a new approach has been taking root in the fashion industry. It emphasizes quality of raw materials, attention to detail, and the passion for beauty that artisans bring to the production process, and consumers are responding in a positive way. Are you seeing that shift too? - Yes, most definitely. I think that as we are living in this world, we know where there has been too much fashion. We, there's really an appreciation for quality. There's really a turn back to, you know, to close that art, you know, made carefully, and there is a sustainability factor into these, you know, there's, everything is, I think, is very timely right now. I mean, being, doing what we do is definitely, current and part of the trend today, where we, and this is, I mean, we're really happy about this. - House of Geal also introduced the May-to-Order collection. This offering allows clients to personalize their garments, allowing them to select specific colors and finishes. So how does that whole process work? - I mean, it's exciting. I mean, clients can come here and have, again, a personal consultation with me and Chloe. We provide them, we know, we have, we go back to, you know, the experiences, maybe, that you could have had, you know, in the seventies and sixties, you know, and fifties in America, you know, where clients could come to a studio and pick fabrics and pick a color and look at the style and have been made for them and, you know, made-to-order, meaning we can either, you know, they can either buy a dress to a size and we feed them on them, you know, in the studio, or we can totally create something new. But it's a complete new experience where you, they can see the atelier behind the scene and they really experience, they have this whole experience into one location. We have a beautiful space where the gowns are hanging, you could see, you could pick a style you like and we have, you know, our master pattern maker who comes to see the client and, you know, take measurements and it's a whole experience. It's really something very, that you could see gets every client very excited. And I was reading trend forecasters were predicting that over the top and individualistic embellishments and personalization are becoming big for young consumers. Are you seeing a bold new wave of this chaotic customization from your clients? What 100% I think, you know, it's, well, we give them. I mean, we are the reason of the, we're creating that problem because we are giving them too many, too many options. But it is what makes us play so exciting. You know, they come here, they're overwhelmed by, you know, the display, the mannequins with all those amazing, you know, ambassador's, you know, showing the work that I do. And yeah, I mean, you know, why not? You know, it's a fun experience. You want to come and have an exciting time and feel that, you know, you get it taken care of. And the most important of all at the end is that you have really the craftsman able to deliver what we are offering, which is very important, too, you know, they feel secure because from the moment they are measured to the moment we deliver that gown, you know, it's they only have a good time and they really feel that they take care of like nowhere else. Despite the challenging time in the luxury business, Oak Couture has been less affected. The high-end customers still have the high spending power. They buy Oak Couture because they want quality, they want detail, they want creativity. Have you seen the effects of the luxury slow down at all? On the high end like this, like where we are, not at all. I think in fact, we feel that it's growing. I mean, there is really more demand for that special experience and that special quality that we, that of Oak Couture. I think this is, you know, goes beyond, you know, the state of the economy. This year, Marked House of Geals, third collection with the New York City Ballet, we touched upon it about it earlier. How did you get involved with costuming for the Ballet and what was the most challenging thing about creating pieces for these highly trained athletes? I got involved because I was, I would have the opportunity to be asked by Mark Carpell, the head of the costume department New York City Bank. ballet, you know, to design at the time, you know, a ballet a few years ago. And I really fell in love with this experience. I think if it's nothing more exciting than to work with, with dancers, you know, such a different experience and dealing, you know, with models on the runaway. I mean, not that I don't love to do runaways, but, you know, the experience with ballet, with dancers goes, it's like in a completely different level. These are a mating athlete, a mating, the grace and movement. It's everything in one person that, you know, it's a dream for a designer like me. The experience, you know, I mean, I known for my pletodressors, my theory, you know, gown that are moving with a lot of sheerness. It was really a natural start for me to work with ballet. The challenges, I mean, the challenges is obviously that, you know, they need to be comfortable, they need to be at ease when they dance. And, you know, the last ballet that I just did, the recent ballet, you know, I created Bustiers, which goes against me. Right. I should have been doing for dancers, but I have to say, you know, the Bustiers were engineered by the New York City ballet in such an incredible way that they had flexibility. And the dancers loved them. And they felt, you know, it's like you're creating costumes. There's nothing more exciting than creating costumes for dancers because you bring them to the next level. You bring their movements, you exaggerate, you amplify, you know, their artistry. And when this work, when they are in love with the costume, I think the performance gets even more excited, exciting. And, you know, it's a win-win. You made a big splash at New York Bridal Fashion Week recently, introducing your second Bridal collection and announcing a partnership with Italian luxury footwear brand Casaday on a Couture Bridal Footwear collaboration. What are the distinct hallmarks of the new Bridal collection and what's new? Well, I've tried to expand in this new Bridal collection from my hand-plated gowns in organza, the, my flowing dressers, to more constructed dressers. I think that the ballet, from the ballet and from this idea of creating bustiers, you know, it brought me a newer result of developing more underpinnings, like petticoats, more bigger shades, bold gowns that are in the spirit of what I have always done, meaning transparency, sheerness, lightness, but now with more volume. So in this last collection, I feel that I've developed more extraordinary, more, I have a dramatic shape, creating more volume, creating more bold gown, creating more the dream in a larger scale, but still respecting the feminine, transparent, you know, lightness that has been my, you know, my reputation and what people are looking for when they come to see me. So how did this collaboration with Casaday come about and why does it work for both brands? Well, it was extraordinary to work with Casaday and fun because, you know, they understood very quickly the aesthetic that I was looking for. I love their shoes and I thought the base of their shoes were really beautiful. I always said to Cisari that, you know, it felt to me that I was working with like Ferrari, you know, because we shape was perfect. It was more about creating, you know, techniques, you know, to make those shoes feel more mature and they understood it, you know, it was, I made, you know, some shoes had some draping of satin on top of them that reminded me many of the dresses that I presented in this bridal collection. We added or we created some embroideries that were also complement to some of the gowns. So together it was a perfect union between artistry, craftsmanship and embroideries, a savoir-faire that is based on fabrics and the shoe maker that is incredibly, you know, good in the base of foundation and so on. So we did, I thought we did some beautiful work together. So do you feel the sophomore collection is more defining than your debut? Yes, 100%. I think that today, you know, you really see more the full personality of what House of Jill is and what we can create for our clients in this last collection and it will lead as you know, I don't know if you are aware, but you know, we will be presenting in few months, you know, good to your in Paris. And I think that will be, you know, you will fully, it will complete this whole, you know, vision of what House of Jill is, you know, from shapes to techniques to, I mean, we will really represent the entire, you know, palette of the workmanship that we can offer to the world. Do you envision a day when the House of Jill gets to a point where you've built a strong boat, a tour brand and have a sizable base of top tier clients where you expand into things like fragrances or other categories where you could boost the image of the House? Well, that is definitely the next step. You know, I think here comes my daughter, Chloe, with, you know, the next generation and together, I think, you know, the future is limitless. We would love to, you know, develop fragrance. We would love to, we would love to go so do more collaborations, which I think will happen as we did with Cassadeh. I think, you know, there is no limit in what House of Jill can become. So Jill, my final question is the luxury item question, which I ask all my guests. So if you were stranded on a deserted island and you could only have one single luxury item with you, what would that luxury item be? It can't be any form of air or water transportation to get you off that island or anything that requires mobile service. You can call Chloe to get you off that island. It's just you. It's just you on this lonely island all by yourself. What would the single luxury item you would like to have with you? Oh, she should be practical and just say that I guess maybe she's a lighter or a knife. I mean, you know, to me, maybe a lighter because I think, you know, it's, I don't know, I would be so scared not to be able to light a fire. Jim and Dale co-founder of House of Jill, thank you so much for joining me on the luxury item. Thank you, Scott. It's my pleasure. Thank you for having me. That's it for this episode of the Luxury Item Podcast. Thank you so much for listening. If you found this useful and entertaining, I would be really grateful if you can share it with a friend or colleague. I would love it if you subscribe so you never miss an episode. And while you're there, be sure to rate and review us on Apple podcasts. It really helps other listeners find us. The luxury item podcast is a production of Silver Tone Consulting. I'm your host, Scott Kerr. Until next time.