BRANDED

from Eyes Magazine Issue 19 // The Experience

SHAKEN

BRANDED CRISTINA MAAG

TEXT: MARTIN MACKENZIE | PHOTOGRAPHY: PABLO ORTEGA

Graduated from SHMS (School of Swiss hotel management) in Leysin, Cristina Maag is a blogger, influencer, marketing consultant and ambassador for luxury brands around the world. She has always supported local designers in her country, Ecuador, and combines luxury with craftsmanship. She is a digital entrepreneur who has developed her activity, enabling thousands of women to become independent.

YOUR ACTIVITY IN A FEW WORDS? My journey began with Front Row, a fashion blog , and 6 years later I am now a fashion and marketing consultant in the luxury sector with a fantastic team of 10 creative people who make the magic happen. We believe less is more. We also believe that fashion should always be communicated within contexts and not as a singled-out element that appears separate from society and from ourselves. This means personal contexts, art contexts, social, local, space and architecture, international, digital, travel contexts. I have worked with and even represented brands such as Nine West, Maserati, L’Occitane and Tiffany & Co. as their ambassador.

YOUR EVERYDAY INSPIRATION? It’s amazing how the way you dress marks so much of what you communicate to the world and what you project about yourself. It’s one of the basics of powerful personal branding and how do I want to brand myself? GIRL BOSS. That smart and poised female CEO. I imagine what I want my presence to say or how I want to feel: powerful, sexy, empowered, and the rest just follows.

YOUR EVERY DAY STYLE ? Simple. Less is more but there must always be at least ONE element that takes on an edgy twist. When I think of what I want my clothes to say about me I think of comfortable, natural and fresh outfits. Though monochrome may sometimes come across as boring and reserved, breaking that idea turns into a fun challenge and I break those clichés through creative styling. We live in a world of extremes that can get over-complicated or over-simplistic, but I try to stay somewhere in the middle, leaning towards the simple side.

YOUR SIGNATURE LOOK ? Fashion, much like other arts such as architecture, are mediums to illuminate the human condition and they give us the opportunity to participate in the most socially historic moments of our era. Who wouldn’t want to proudly declare “while I was alive, I was a part of these human movements, of these specific times, but I did it my way with my style! ”. Speaking of style, I do feel that seeking one signature style that will last forever is a form of self-sabotage because that unique personal stamp that we as humans have is also in a constant rebirth. Every stage we go through in life lets us adopt a new identity that incorporates, but also transcends, your previous identity. It’s a very intimate and personal relationship one must have with fashion to fully grasp the idea of a signature look that can also evolve with you and your life. At least at this moment in my life, my signature look would be a timeless black jumpsuit with Louboutin stilettos (covered in spikes, of course). Where would I be without my leather jacket and a classic Chanel double flap, topped off with matte scarlet red lips?

AN EVENING DRESS CODE? A bespoke embellished power suit with stilettos. We still live in a world where many women won’t dare throw on a masculine piece… not me. Forget machismo. How fun would it be to adventure into your father’s closet and pick out that FABULOUS vintage Armani suit that doesn’t fit him anymore and tailor it for yourself! Why not push your own boundaries, make something edgy and unique while also promoting a circular economy that helps the planet, ALL at the same time. Maybe it is too farfetched in a society that is still tied to a silent yet very present “comfort” that refuses to take the time to think outside the box when it comes to dressing.

YOUR WINTER DESTINATION? Tokyo. Aside from being a shopping haven, you’ll stumble across fabulous weather, delicious food, and rich cultural experiences that deliver on every level (from the food to the street style, museums and galleries). It is one of the most interesting adventures I’ve ever experienced.