PANAJI: When she started interning with the pioneer of fashion designing in Goa Wendell Rodricks little did she know that one day she will be taking his legacy forward. Schulen Fernandes, who took over the reins of Wendell Rodricks says that her aim since day one has been elevate her work carrying the DNA of the label.
I was born in the label. I want to see it grow not just commercially but also exponentially. We would like to licence the brand out to other brands and collaborate with those on the same design ideology which could be ranging from shirts to perfume or watches. But undoubtedly, will be sense of basic principles of the brand DNA which is conscious, standard classic feel, minimal and comfort," Fernandes told GT.
With a perspective to promote Goa's art and culture, Fernandes and her team are looking forward to collaborate with Goan artisans to bring out the best of Goa authenticity and also to help the undermined artist group. We are mulling to rope in local artisans and work with them for give our apparels a touch of Goan ethnicity. Lately we had collaborated with a young nineteen year old girl from Colvale who was involved in crochet design. We had made a whole new collection of crochet jewellery and featured it in our winter collection, Fernandes said.
Talking about sustainable fashion, Fernandes opined that sustainability is a mandate in fashion industry considering the fact there is a lot of wastage of resources in this field. A single piece of jeans is made using 2000 litres of water. So, yes sustainability is something which we all need to focus on and our brand has been constantly working on creating sustainable fashion. Infact, Wendell was one of the first persons in the fashion industry to take up cotton on the ramp, she said.