Simply Abu Dhabi XXX

2 0 3 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I A igner was founded in Munich by the Hungarian fashion designer Etienne Aigner and German textile businessman Heiner H. Rankl. Etienne had already enjoyed success in the 1950s when he presented his first handbag collection in New York but when he teamed up with Heiner—who possessed a keen eye for modern trends as well as a sense of tradition—the two devised Aigner; it was 1965. During the 1970s Aigner became an internationally renowned brand. The brand says, “At that time, Munich was the best place to found a new, leading German fashion brand. In the mid 60s and 70s Munich was full of excitement; there was a euphoric belief in progress and the future held no threat. Certainly not in Munich, a city so close to Italy that has always been more in tune with the dolce vita than anywhere else in Germany. At that time, nobody needed to invent an attitude because everyone had a natural feel for the lightness of life: flower power! Parties! Love! Discos! The jet set!” The design of the 60s and 70s reflected this great freedom. It was young, streamlined and futuristic with an emphasis on the colour orange. During the 1980s Aigner extended its product range by awarding licences for watches, jewellery and eyewear. In the 1990s the brand finally expanded into womenswear and menswear by granting licences for its ready- to-wear range. In the year 2000, Etienne Aigner died in New York at the age of 96. His legacy lives on in this thriving brand, and in 2003 Aigner made its debut at Milan Fashion Week with its womenswear collection. Aigner remains a symbol for unique craftsmanship, superior quality and perfection. All the accessories are made in Signa, just outside Florence, and each product embodies a winning combination of German precision and Tuscan tradition. In 2008, Christian Beck, a young German who had previously worked for Burberry and JOOP!, joined the company’s leather goods sector. Two years later he was appointed Head of Leather and Accessories for Aigner. In an impressive career progression, by early 2012 the brand appointed him as creative director for the whole brand, supervising and coordinating both accessories and women’s ready to wear. Today, Aigner is growing exponentially, especially in the Middle East, and the allure of this refined brand has never been so strong. Simply AbuDhabi: Can you describe the relationship betweenAigner and the Middle East? Christian Beck: We have a long history with the Middle East because it’s one of our most important markets. Every time I approach a new collection, I consider your market because I love Middle Eastern taste and style and because I also want to pay tribute to the Middle East as a region. SAD: Why do you thinkMiddle Eastern customers are so attracted to Aigner? CB: The reason why there is this love relationship is because Middle Eastern customers love and appreciate traditional craftsmanship combined with new and contemporary design. SAD: What can you reveal about Aigner’s upcoming fall/winter collection? CB: The collection is called Wunderkammer (Chamber of Wonders), which was invented in the 1950s when people started to travel and collect items that came from all over the world like, for example, from Africa or the Middle East. So, what I wanted to express with the collection is that you can mix and match everything and create something beautiful at the end. I mixed oriental influences, such as the carpets used as a catwalk, or the Portuguese tiles, the animal print, some African and Asian influences, art deco. I didn’t just mix cultures but also times and eras: art deco, the 70s and 80s. SAD: How did you start to work on this collection? CB: Actually, it’s always a new experience, because you can find inspiration in different things; sometimes it’s a name or just a feeling. Last spring, the collection was about love. This time, I didn’t want to decide on a specific inspiration so I mixed everything. And I didn’t want to focus on one single thing. Nowadays, as a fashion brand, I think you should offer a variety of things that allow customers to choose what they want to be and how they want to look, so that they can express their individuality. SAD: What are themain pieces for this fall collection? CB: For fall, the Alaia bag is definitely a must-have. It’s a multi-cassette bag with an attractive handle. Diadora is also appealing, with a metal feature inspired by the Indian mandala. SAD: And what about the ready-to-wear collection? CB: We do have a fashion show collection, but, of course, our main focus is leather goods like bags, shoes and accessories. I do a fashion show collection that is handmade in our Munich ateliers but mostly, we produce sweaters or leather jackets or skinny pants. So, I do the collection to convey a vision of the seasonal mood to the customer who can buy a selection of our fashion show collection in stores. SAD: And themen’s collection? CB: We do have leather goods for men like wallets, business bags and other things. Classically in Aigner’s iconic burgundy or in black. For men, we work a lot with the belts and wallets, for which Aigner is famous. SAD: Regarding bags, is it possible to customise them? CB: We did it several times with our special bags and we did offer some one-of-a-kind pieces. But personally, I would love to offer to the Middle Eastern customer a full custom- made service. SAD: What about watches and jewellery? CB: In the Middle East, our watches and jewellery are loved and—together with the bag— they are a huge part of our business due to the fact that the licence we have is very extensive. The watches are for both men and women and automatic as well as quartz. Regarding both our watches and jewellery, made in collaboration with International Luxury Group, I coordinate their design, in line with the current collection.