A new generation of fashion design goes online
Lisbon
FOR VISITORS 2014
Time Out Lisbon 1
CONTENTS Lisbon for Visitors 2014
Design talent
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‘Grinaldas’ by Beli
Young Talent TÊMA
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More is better
Young Talent ‘Grinaldas’ by Beli
Profile Joana Mota Capitão
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DISCOVER PORTUGAL
14 Avenida da Liberdade, 13.3’ 1250-139 Lisboa Tel: 21 359 3100 Fax: 21 359 3131 www.timeout.pt
Editorial
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Young Talent Cantê
Feature Vertty
Trend Selling talent online
21Interview Maria Guedes stylista 22 News Lisbon Fashion Week 25 Image Reportage Showpage 26-31 Image Reportage 34 Mapping Portugal’s global takeover
37 Top tips
Kitess Lisbon for Visitors 2014 is a special edition of Time Out Lisboa
Vertty
Sales Director Cristina Mesquita tel: 21 359 3110 Advertising Assistant Rita Duarte tel: 21 359 3107 Account Michèle Boullier Faro
Marketing and Distribution
Editor Violeta Malheiro Art Director Violeta Malheiro
marketing @timeout.pt Director Ana Alcobia
Advertising publicidade@timeout.com
Production
Printing Lisgráfica Distribution VASP Distribuição de Publicacçoes SA No de Depósito legal: 264155/07 Print Run 20.000
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YOUNG TALENT
From the first click, young sister act Teresa and Mariana is a story of online business success. Their bet on small collections of unique designs makes TÊMA get all the ‘Likes’.
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o other girl will be wearing the same clothes as you is the guarantee TÊMA sisters Teresa and Madalena give to their customers. Exclusivity and originality are TÊMA’s watchwords. With various collections so far, each with its own theme the unique handmade pieces stand out in the crowd. TÊMA’s name results from the putting together of the fists syllables of the names of two sisters who created the brand. Teresa graduated in communications and Madalena in design in fashion design. They sensed a niche in original women’s clothing and in 2011 the brand was launched. “The idea was born out of our common interest in creating a project that reflected what we are and like” says 23 years old Teresa, explaining the creation of the concept with her sister Madalena, 31. With a clear idea, a big passion for clothes and the will to create their own business, the sisters have, since the first pieces and collection in 2011 come a long way and the
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success has been enormous. The fact is that when they say exclusivity they really mean it. Only one item is made of each piece. Whatever you buy from TÊMA; top, jumper, dress, shorts, you name it but no one else will have the same. Understanding what clothes mean for those who wear also stands high in the sisters agenda. They know that great big brands offer a wide variety of options but they create masses of look alike. And who wants on a night out, dinner party or even office space to see one girl (or various) with an outfit equal to the one you’re wearing? Even if they don’t want to admit, it’s the most nerve-racking thing so “our mission is to create a relationship with the TÊMA clients in a way that, confidently they will buy these exclusive pieces that make them feel proud of themselves” explains sister Madalena. One of the things that caught my interest for this brand was their unique T-shirts and blouses. The pieces are drawn individually and produced using
a wide mix of textures and materials which results in super original clothing. Marketing and sales are made through the social media platform. TÊMA only sells via their Facebook page. As for future plans, the sisters want the brand to go on as a work in progress in proving selling strategies but keeping true to their original purpose. To buy any of TÊMA pieces you have to watch out for the launching date of each collection. Start by putting a Facebook like and adding their page to your list of interests. Then it’s up to you to send a private Facebook message to TÊMA’s page and hope to be the first wanting the item you’ve chosen. All pieces announced until now have been sold in the first 15/20 min. Not a single one was left in stock from any collection. The next opportunity to get your hands on the ever so sought-after pieces is this month where they will be posting the brand’s new items. I’m ready to try to get one myself. Find out more at www.facebook.com/temadesign Prices start at 15eur.
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Flower girls supporting some handmade garnalds
YOUNG TALENT
Beli’s flower power
She’s just 23 years old but already fills heads with colour and joy, projects and dreams. Beli is a true source of inspiration.
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here’s no best time to be happy. There’s no right time to dream. There’s no time limit when you are a princess in a fairy tail. The sky is the limit for creative imagination and some iconic items help us transcend our worldly limitations. That is what Isabel Figueiredo does to make us feel like princesses in wonderland. Beli, as she is best known designs and creates the most beautiful head garlands that crown any girls dreams with simplicity, romance and style. You don’t have to get married to wear them along the aisle, you can wear them to a party, to the beach or even to hold you hair in the shower. They are all different and whoever has one on also feels unique. Well, not exactly.... Beli’s garlands became such a big success that everybody is wearing them and she cant’t keep up with the orders. This story of creativity, entrepreneurship and success starts in Brasil were Isabel Figueiredo was spending some time and had to make ends meet. She was 23, attentive to details and to the need to recreate herself in that moment in life. Inspired by the luxurious vegetation, tropical flowers, overall colourful vibe and her own needs, Beli started making the garlands so that people would have “the opportunity to recreate themselves and have that one special thing in their wardrobe that would make them feel on top of the world: the “Grinaldas”, or garlands, she says. “I wanted to make something very beautiful to wear that also makes us dream, each with a unique detail, handmade with love.” She got to work plaiting flowers and leaves, beads and silky yarns giving birth to her “magical hand made
flower crowns.” She started by giving them to friends, friends told friends, people started buying, ordering more and pictures were popping up online full of Facebook ‘likes’ with lovely girls wearing the lovely head wreaths. Beli has already one crafts person working with her but their four hands are not enough to make as many garlands as the requests, especially now that summer is coming. As we speak she stopped accepting orders as a means to fullfill all previous ones before accepting more. “Right now Portuguese celebrities, agencies and magazines are at the top of the list”, she says. ffffBeli has conquered Portugal, now she’s ready to go global. The competition is fierce but as Beli says the important things is to “be sure to wear some flowers in your hair.” Understanding what clothes mean for thoseyour whoown wear also bystands Order grinalda Beli at high in
Isabel Figueiredo aka Beli creator of the garnalds
Makuxi garnald 15eur
www.facebook.com/grinaldasbybeli Prices start at 15eur
Flower girls supporting some handmade garnalds
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Joana Mota Capitão at her showroom
CAPTAIN JOANA & HER IRREGULAR SHAPES Joana might not know how to command a ship as her surname might suggest but she sure knows her way around jewellery design and manufactaring. At 31 Joana already has a shop in Tokyo stocking her pieces and two more in Spain.
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he Space Invaders have come out of the arcade of video games and can now hang round your neck, wrist, earlobes, go round your finger or hold the cuffs of your shirt. In acrylic and silver, bright colours and affordable prices, they are the subject of Joana Mota Capitão latest creation and one more successful project of her JMC jewellery brand. The neon orange space invaders cuff-links are her 92 year old grand mother favourites. Twenty nine year old Joana Mota Capitão’s involvement in arts and crafts comes right from her childhood. Her grandmother, an antique dealer always showed her findings, furniture paintings or jewellery and Joana was naturally drawn to a design degree in environment production at IADE School in Lisbon. Joana went on adding various degrees to her CV: a course in painting, a drawing class and a Contemporary Jewellery course in Ar.Co, Lisbon but moved to Barcelona
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to get her first professional experience in a year internship with Marc Monzó jewellers and Estela Guitart between 2010 and 2011. Back in Portugal Joana worked with jeweller Valentim Quaresma in prestigious events like Moda Lisboa (Lisbon Fashion Week). She was told to be “attentive to detail, dynamic, very professional and very applied.” This inspired her to start creating her own brand. However, she only made small custom-made pieces offering them as Christmas, wedding or christenings gifts. Finally, in May 2012 she decided to create her own JMC brand. “ That was when I really felt the need to share with people that jewels are my true passion to which I want to devote body and soul.” Joana opens her studio twice a year to show her collection and generate attention from the media and potential buyers. She has shown in several jewellery exhibitions and has pieces
in Spain at the CaixaForum in Madrid, in Vigo at the MARCO Museum Store and in Japan in a store in the heart of Tokyo. She works part-time in a clothing shop at the trendy LX Factory to pay for the materials she turns into art pieces. The green-eyed blond whose surname translates into Captain is the life of the party and when she talks about her work the passion is obvious. But was her success instantaneous? “Success was not immediate, the feedback has always been very positive, overall it has gone quite well but the brand is still growing.” Her work is divided into two parts: the more conceptual pieces which are inspired by her surroundings and the commercial ones. “The pieces always have a concept behind a story that is created, but essentially they are travelling, nature, architecture, my childhood inspirations,” explains the artist. Her love for all shapes irregular is
JMC & one of her pieces
obvious when you look at her collections and overall they are quite eclectic. The pieces have different styles and can please both the 18-year-old funky daughter or the mother who only wears gold rings. “I define my style as perhaps a bit too graphic and geometric. Some pieces have large volumes and fittings that make them homogeneous and consistent.” And if you cant find anything you like but know what you want, Joana also offers a personalized service, with bespoke pieces to the taste of the customer, “a more conceptual service where I can be bolder, with unique pieces and a limited production; and a more commercial service, with unlimited production with lower prices and with
the aim of reaching more people” explains the jeweller. “The fact that I am rigorous and applied in the execution of the work, attentive to detail and innovative, makes me able to create unique pieces as well as using different materials, these are points in favour.” She has plenty of imagination, skills and taste and she is also ambitious. Next step will be showing in the UK at the upcoming IJL International Jewellery London between the 31st of August and the 2nd of September. However, to be a constant presence in these fairs is hard because it requires great investment, explains Joana. “In the long run, I will try to open my own store brand” she says confidently.
JMC aztec inspired bracelets
JMC’s desk
PROFILE
JMC’s famous space invador pieces
Visit: www.joanamotacapitao.com or go to Rua da Esperança, nº 59 / 61, Lisbon or ARTBEAT - Av. Barbosa do Bocage, Lisboa. Prices vary between 40€ and 750€ . if you want something unique, in silver, porcelain, acrylic, recycled cardboard, paper, precious or semi-precious stones or even gold, ask Joana, she will do it for you.
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IT’S ALWAYS SUMMER SOMEWHERE!
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he sun shines for everyone but the right bikini can be hard to find. If you are born in a country with lots of beaches, good weather and free dress code the choice of swimwear is crucial. Portugal is one of those places and so, fussing about what to wear at the beach can be not only a personal issue but also a business opportunity. Two beach lovers and good friends Rita Soares, 27, an Mariana Delgado, 26 decided to have a go and launched the first Portuguese swimwear brand Cantê. Maybe they were not very sure of their success so the choice of the name reflects the hope it will work. According to the dictionary Cantê means “ hopefully”, or “ God willing”, and this carries a particular weight in times of recession, which is when their adventure started. Both Rita and Mariana have degrees in architecture but good work was hard to find and the pay offered for the odd job in a big atelier not satisfying. Still thinking about being architects, the two friends set off to Brazil, like so many others of their generation whose degrees did not guarantee work and income. Brazil did not offer them a job but it gave them an idea of something completely different to do. Research, entrepreneurship and will power is required to get a start-up going and that, together with hope made it possible for Rita and Mariana to develop their
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project: to create the first Portuguese swimwear brand, inspired naturally by what they had seen in Copacabana. They love fashion and they could draw so the lines and curves of building constructions found a new way to express themselves in the fitting of tiny pieces of clothing to bodies of all shapes and sizes. Design and detail were their main concern. It was a rather slow process on a low cost budget. It took Rita and Mariana two years of planning and an investment of 5,000 euros to find the ideal suppliers and factory to produce their pieces, guaranteeing the finishes and
quantities they planned. “In the end, it paid off,” says Rita: “ When we started in 2011, we had immediate success because there didn’t exist a Portuguese brand with a design such as ours. We started to reach people we’d never thought we’d reach. As soon as we launched the first collection we understood we were going to be successful.” Since they launched the brand,
at least 10 new brands have emerged; it doesn’t necessarily mean that they have competition. “A lot of brands have taken different paths, to target different audiences,” she says. “What makes us different is our exclusive patterns, and the fact that we make small quantities of each pieces.” The main objective with this small design companies is always the same. They want to produce items, unique and limited so that whoever is wearing them is not confronted publically with someone wearing exactly the same thing. “It’s so not good to arrive at the beach and see your bikini in a maybe even better shaped body!” So Rita and Mariana stress out that their bikinis are “Made by us, perfect for you.” Why would they claim to be perfect? Mariana explains: “Our bikinis are very focused on details and on how best to adapt to different body types. There is nothing worse than a bikini that does not fit well and that does not fit the body. Despite the wide variety presented in every shop, it’s always difficult to find a perfect piece. With perfect I mean the right shape, good support, great fabric, unique design and drop dead gorgeous. We want to create unique, different pieces so that people who wear them feel cute, stylish and confident, so it’s very important that they [the bikinis] besides being cute are comfortable.” Their bikinis swim-
suits and trikinis can be worn in different ways, the cuts and patterns tend to merge with the shapes of the body and the overall lines are inspired in nature and ethnical influences. Frills and overlapping fabrics make them light and fun and the colours spell out summer transporting us into a hippie chic scenario of long summer days, endless afternoons in relaxed and cheerful environments. Mariana and Rita sell online worldwide and have now got a showroom in Lisbon, in the arty CCB area in Belém, from where the navigators departed to discover the world. That is also their aim, to get their swimwear across the four continents. They have already reached Australia with their ‘Endless Summer Collection’. Cantê 2014 summer collection Cantê founders Mariana & Rita
Cantê 2014 summer collection
Cantê 2014 summer collection
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FEATURE
Towel revolution Have you noticed how towels are usually “depressingly generic?” Diogo Cruz has taken a basic necessity and revamped it into a sucessful lovebrand.
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inter, summer, holiday break or fancy trip who doesn’t dream about nipping off to paradise beaches under the sun? I’ll tell you who, sand haters--or more accurately, eremikophobiacs—anywhere. Sand, as the afflicted will know, can be an unrelenting and savvy pest, especially when you only have a wet towel to fight it with. Well, not any longer. There is a new beach towel that sheds water and keeps the sand at bay to improve beach experience that much more. Technology and design work together in the new Vertty triangular towels. Made of Keten, a new sustainable synthetic material that wicks water away, 30 per cent lighter than traditional cotton, 10 per cent bigger that regular beach towels, the Vertty’s have colourful waterproof hidden pockets and a zigzagging profile. If that’s not enough, they also look good. Launched last summer, July 2013,
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this new love brand is a re-invention of the plain beach towel turned into a trendy fashion accessory. Four Portuguese beach lovers wrapped up this project. It all started when 24 year old Harvard Business School graduate, Diogo Cruz was surfing in Australia and realized everybody had their feet on Havaianas, label swimwear such as Roxy or Osklen and “depressingly generic towels”. Together with the designer Frederico Cardoso, 25, Luís Figueiredo, 26 and Bernardo Cardoso, Cruz developed “the concept of an iconic towel, a Top left Vertty’s publicity transition of elegance and sophisticaTop right Vertty’s towels tion from the city to the beach.” Middle the mobile showroom The refinements in the Vertty towel Bottom the unique tag & packaging were well thought of and achieved. The concept of an The innovative fabric with less cotton in the blend lightens the weight of iconic towel, a the cloth. The triangular cuts make it transition of easier to fold along the vertices that elegance and gave name to the brand. Those shapes and size allows stretching arms sophistication from and legs without touching the sand.
“The discrete waterproof pouch to hold keys and wallet is so well masked in the folds”, Cruz explains, “that passersby’s won’t know it is there.” They come in nine colours, are chic, fashionable and expensive. The branding of the Lisbon based start-up’s product of pieced together triangles comes in a box that has an outside sand-polish finishing “to give you instantly a beach feeling the first time you touch the product”, explains the entrepreneur, Cruz. “We are also betting on these details to set the stage for interested customers to pay a higher price than what is charged for the typical beach towel”, he adds. Not only have the four friends found a niche product to develop, they are also having fun whilst building a business model. I asked Cruz what was their strategy: “First we want to establish Vertty in the market as a love brand. We are also working on going global and in fact, in 11 months of existence, we have exported so far to 40 different countries, from South Korea to Peru.” He adds, “We sell more outside of Portugal than in Portugal. “The team is Portuguese,
the brand was established in Portugal, but Vertty is international.” This is almost an understatement. A quick look at the Vertty Facebook page shows more than 20.000 fans from 143 countries, an honourable mention from Awwwards and a lot of press including Fast Company and Monocle and the 11 times world champion surfer Kelly Slater as a happy customer. Part of that sucess is the image Cruz and his team have crafed around what is really just a nifty-looking beach towel. They aren’t selling just that, of course, but more importantly, a wistful, beach experience, complete with good-looking friends and a great retro ‘55 Citroen HY that doubles as the brand’s portable flagship. The sands of St. Bart’s can be yours. All you have to do, Cruz advises, is to “try a different tryangle.” In September the Vertty team will cruise the Portuguese coast. Now they are off to Cinqueterre and Portofino, Italy and Biarritz, France surfing and promoting Vertty in their mobile showroom. They sure know how to mix business with pleasure...
“Portuguese, The team is the brand was established in Portugal, but Vertty is international.
”
“
the city to the beach.
”
Visit them at: www.tryvertty.com Prices start at 69,89eur
Vertty girl with the unique towel
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TREND
Unique creations
go gl bal Is there a niche in the market? Portuguese creators are finding their way through the economic recession. Word of mouth becomes world of mouth and before you know it, the youngest generation is taking over.
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ood jobs are hard to find, the recession or slow growth does not seem to improve but the good news is that recent Portuguese graduates are being able to re-invent themselves; from architects to fashion designers, from economists to entrepreneurs in the lifestyle business. Local weather and beach life, materials and traditional crafts have influenced their imagination and these youngsters are using the economic recession to their advantage adventuring in the creation of swimwear, beach towels, cork accessories, jewellery or unique T-shirts. They are exporting worldwide and are being featured in the media. It is quite a feat particularly as most of them had never had any previous business experience or intent to do precisely that. After the initial frustration of facing the job market, some, like Cantê’s co-founders Mariana and Rita gave up the expectation of drawing architectural lines and set to design bathing suits, bikinis and trikinis. Portuguese weather being an asset, their talent to create unique pieces and determination to succeed, the two friends are now managing and expanding one of the most successful local brands currently selling swimwear. Cantê’s designers, like Vertty beach towels creator’s Diogo Cruz and Frederico
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Vertty’s final product
F-commerce is the favourite tool
Adding last details to a piece - Bodhi
Cardoso and so many of the other young fashion designers featured, started small, realized they had room to grow and ended up with something bigger than themselves. How does small become big? The size of the country has something to do with it. Portugal’s whole population is the size of London’s and it is known that news, good or bad, travels around fast. The forever trusted word of mouth, family and friend recommendations expanded through social media can make appreciation viral and turn a single product into a must-have item. Would be jobless young professionals are turning a profit thanks to their creativity, entrepreneurship and online marketing and sales. One element seems to be fundamental in this trend of creativity and e-commerce. What is on sale is different from what the high street brands have to offer. In a small country where big brands control fashion it was difficult to find something special and be sure that nobody else would be wearing the same dress or item at the office, beach or party. All these young Portuguese fashion and lifestyle designers are betting on their unique, exclusive products to attract attention as if in the global world what mattered is difference. In fact, this generation of Portuguese creators is just following the international trend of social media
pushed business that is changing the structure of traditional commerce in Portugal and elsewhere, bringing visibility to the smallest of items and to the smallest countries. Cantê founder Rita explains, “if we hadnt’ started selling via Facebook we wouldn’t have had the visibility we do now.” The latest official figures from the Trade Office AICEP show that there are 2.5 million people buying online in Portugal, with a growing trend expected to reach 49 billion euros in 2017. In the last the number of brands selling online has increased 150 percent according to Aptitude.net Using mainly Facebook and Instagram, the featured creators start by getting ‘Likes’ and followers from their family and friends and move on to apps and marketing tech that helps increase the visibility of their products and naturally the sales national and worldwide. Gone are the costs of having a shop and paying workers wages; now what is needed is the product and the internet wizard. There is also a difference between e-commerce and social trade. Ricardo Grandinetti, product manager for Like Store, a company that creates shopping on Facebook, believes that the main difference from a shop in the social network to a common system of e-commerce is the power of disclosure of social networks. “It is possible to connect the company to its stakeholders in the social network. Products that are more successful in trade for this channel are the ones that arouse
Kitess preparing for new collection
sketch
interest and generate impulse sales,” he says. Impulse certainly worked for TÊMA’s success sales with their unique handmade garments. Using online media as a means for crowdsourcing they sold their latest 25-piece collection in less than 20 minutes. That is 1 piece sold per minute. Ultimately this is any creator’s dream, but for these youngstudents-turned-fashion-designers it is their reality. And most of them are in fact relying on F-commerce, the Facebook possibility to convert information into sales at the moment the report goes online. Mariana Braga, TÊMA co-founder believes that “Facebook is the ultimate catalogue where everyone can see and be seen. Our choice in selling online through the social media platform was obvious.” Vertty’s towels are travelling around being sold in beaches worldwide, Joana’s pieces of silverware can be bought in a Tokyo shop, others have trade orders from Brazil or Spain but there seems to be one essential favourite driving forces behind all the sales. The F-commerce; global and simple, both for the seller and the buyer. In fact, the F-commerce is a market weapon. According to Vocus, market strategists 1 in 3 small businesses use Facebook, nearly 10 million small registered businesses use Facebook today and there are over 42 million pages on Facebook
many of which are used for business purposes with 17 per cent selling products. Vocus also found out that 86 per cent of small businesses feel that Facebook is a valuable marketing tool for their brand, 58 per cent of businesses see a drop in marketing costs when they move onto Facebook and 20 per cent of shoppers prefer to buy via Facebook instead of in the brand’s website. Social commerce sales will reach 30 billion a year by 2015 and 50 per cent of it happens through the social media platform. Shopaholic Maria Fino believes that “online shopping is the 21st century trend; it’s easy and practical - you don’t have to go out of your way.” The interesting thing is that Facebook itself made an investment in social media by giving 200,000 small businesses 50 dollars in free advertising credits to attract businesses to their social platform. That represented an overall 10 million investment and Cantê were one of the young Portuguese creators that benefited from it. “All of a sudden we were getting Likes and receiving sales orders for our bikinis from all over the place, even California”, says Mariana, co-founder. Inspired by travel and imagination, full of drive to succeed, these young entrepreneurs fought recession and limitations by recreating themselves and the Portuguese commerce industry. The result is online to be seen and sold using the tools of the time. Their unique productions are going global and that is the trend.
Cantê explaining the design process
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Maria Guedes:
a stylist
INTERVIEW
for stylists
In the last weekend of May, the Stylista Summer market attracted thousand of visitors to Estoril. Dozens of young Portuguese fashion and lifestyle creators showed and sold their work to the public and industry. How did they get together?
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he stylist Maria Guedes is the drive behind the gathering of talents at the Estoril fashion and lifestyle event and the reason why is that she knows them all. The 36-year-old stylist was born in Lisbon and can recall forever being interested in fashion.
What did you do to succeed in this industry?
I started by studying marketing, publicity and then did a post-graduation in Communication and Image. This gave me a good all round perspective, but I wanted to broaden my horizons and in 2006 I went off to the USA.
Did you study or work in the USA?
I did both. I was very lucky to be accepted at the New York Parsons New School of Design, fashion studies programme. Then it was all about seeing how what I had learnt so far was put into practice. I did traineeships with Zac Posen and Jill Stuart and helped organize the New York Fashion Week.
But you came back to Portugal...
much larger space, which is the FIARTIL (which happens to host the Estoril Craft Fair every summer). And it has been a pleasure to disclose all the potential of these people.
Any difference between this market and the previous ones you organized?
More space, more supply - more than 40 stalls - one outdoor environment very pleasant, ideal to spend a good hour walking, eating and of course, doing some summer shopping! The marketing and promotion has also been bigger and this attracts not just the general public but also the fashion industry, shop owners etc and this helps build bridges between the creators and their business’s.
And what is next?
Well, it is not just what is but where. I have received so many requests from other parts of the country, North and South to have an edition of the market there that maybe that is exactly what I will do!
Of course, this is were I belong and my experience in the Big Apple was perfect to help me launch my own projects in Portugal. It is not just fashion that I love, it is also drawing and all image related supports so I dedicated myself to personal styling, accessories design and I started my blog www.mariaguedeslisboa.clix.pt.
What is the objective of your blog?
I comment daily on fashion, lifestyle and what to buy and this puts me in touch not just with the established labels and brands but also with all the new talent around looking for a platform to acknowledge their existence. You can’t imagine how many amazing creators I come across all the time.
The stylista summer market in FIARTIL
Is this what gave you the idea to make the Summer Market Stylista?
(There is a big smile on her face when she talks about this event)
It all started last spring when I visited the Colares Market (Sintra) where some Portuguese designers were showing their work. I thought it could be a good idea to gather a good selection of the new Portuguese brands - which I already select and promote on the blog - and bring them together for a full day in the offline universe where they could benefit from a really strong synergy. Last year I still managed to organize three markets of this kind and the public interest was so big that this year I ventured into a
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Maria Guedes, fashion blogger
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NEWS
The search for new blood It will only take place next October but the quest for new talents to show at Moda Lisboa 2014 is now on. The organisation has launched an appeal for both Portuguese or International young fashion designers or fashion students starting their own brands to submit their applications to participate next Autumn on the 43rd edition of the Lisbon Fashion Week. Applicants have until June 16th to submit their projects and will be judged by concept, colours and materials and between 8 to 10 will be chosen to participate. Moda Lisboa is taking charge of all the cat-walk costs but production and styling are up to each fashion style candidate. The winner won’t be confined to the Lisbon passerelle. Moda Lisbon is taking the best designer to Holland’s Fashion Clash Festival that gathers young fashion blood from all over the world. For more information head to: http://dailymodalisboa.blogspot.ie
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SHOWPAGE
IMAGE REPORTAGE
Here we show you a sneak peek of some of our favourite brands at the moment. Get looking and start clicking!
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ike many before them, these brands are using already existing sucessful business models in which to inspire themselves for greatness. ‘Zpura’, ‘Love in Cork’, ‘HLC Jewellery,’ ‘Cool Soft & Chic’, and ‘Origama’ are just some examples of the many online sales shops avaialble nowadays. Perhaps something to note is that most of these brands address their audience in English. Another thing most of these brands have in common? They all host a very visual pleseant aesthetic that’s hitting the hippy-chic level. They portray a cool, hip, lifestyle that many dream of and only some can actually achieve. Perhaps why so many of their products are so popular. Through Facebook posts and comments, these brands are taking a chance at internationalization and most are getting the sucess they deserve. But, where to go from here? If there is such a competition between online brands, how do they difer one from the other? Some brands simply try their luck by promoting themselves in the pages of the most popular businesses. What makes their brand so special as opposed to all the others that are selling similiar products? These new businesses have to be inovative, they have to prove that they are better and that they bring something different to the table. They need to inspire the consumer. ‘More is Better’ is an example of a brand that is already doing this sucessfully. With 10thousand likes and a whole beachy-cool-girl vibe full of handmade acessories giving importance to the detail of each piece. With such a demand for these authentic brands to exist, there needs to be a place for them to showcase their work besides online. Most Sundays there is a market at the Lx Factory in Alcântara known as “a creative island occupied by coorportations and professinals of the industry which serves also as a stage for a diverse set of happenings related to fashion, publicity, communication, fine arts, architecture, music etc, attracting numerous visitors to rediscover Alcântara through an engaged dynamic.” A factory of experiences were intervention, thought, production is made possible. Staging ideas and products in a place belonging to everyone, for everyone.
What? More is Better
“This brand reflects my bohemian, rocker and some sophisticated style.Handmade cool & trendy accesories”
Where? www.moreisbetter.com.pt How? iwantmoreisbetter@gmail.com Price? Starts at 36eur 24 Time Out Lisbon
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What? Love in Cork
“An ecological, sustainable 100% Portuguese brand. Based on the excelence of cork, our creation is based in values like quality, elegance and distinction.”
Where? www.loveincork.com How? info@loveincork.com Price? Starts at 35eur
What? Zpura
“Zpura is a new brand that reflects the summer colours. Its tshirts are aimed at youngsters who look for colour, detail and the wild spirit.”
Where? www.facebook.com/zpura How? z.pura.z@gmail.com Price? Starts at 30eur
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What? Bodhi
“Our products are designed for strong, independent, 21st century women who know nothing is as sexy as being comfortabel, happy joyful.”
Where? www.bbodhi.com.pt How? bodhi.encomendas@gmail.com Price? Starts at 42eur
What? Cool, Soft & Chic
“We create different versatil quality pieces.”
Where? www.facebook.com/CoolSoftandChic How? coolsoftchic@hotmail.com Price? Starts at 36eur
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What? Kitess Where? www.facebook.com/Kitessclothing How? imkitess@gmail.com Price? Starts at 29eur
What? HLC Jewellery “As a result of dreams,trips and love, the creation of jewellery was born as a means to let go.”
Where? http://www.hlc.pt How? Rua Escola Politecnica 12, Principe Real Price? Starts at 30eur
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WHERE?
Portugal’s global takeover
Map showing Portugal’s young designers selling points
JMC
Albeit being a small country, Portugal is slowly but surely taking over the world with it’s beautifully crafted designs. Young fashion and lifestyle creators are finding niche markets for their works as word of mouth and social media spreads out Portuguese fashion into the world.
CANTÊ
VERTTY
Spreading out into Spain and Brazil. Cantê’s swimwear can also be seen in Australian beaches. The only difficulty? Choosing which piece we like the most!
Vertty’s can be spotted at the beach in over 40 countries. The beautifully designed packages and towels are a big hit in the United States and Australia.
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JOANA MOTA CAPITÃO Joana’s jewellery is loved in Tokyo and the same will happen in London at the next International Jewellery Fair. She’s always working at something new.
Vertty
Cantê
‘GRINALDAS’ BY BELI These uniquely handmade garlands are flowering Mexico, Brasil and most recently Argentina. It’s hard to keep up
By Beli with demand but Beli believes that creating with love is the answer and be sure to wear “some flowers in your hair.” Time Out Lisbon 35
TOP TIPS
How to be a sucessful entrepeneur - this is what our featured artists have to say:
Pay attention to details
Design is everything
“We looked at lots of ‘love’ brands,” Cruz says, naming Apple, Swatch, Lego, Coca-cola. “And we identified the key success indicators of those brands” lay in the attention details, he says. “It was all about the concept -- not being all over the place but sticking” to the imagery of the brand.
A key to reinvention is mixing up the design and changing how people think about a product.
Give customers an experience
When a company sells something as ordinary as beach towels, soaps or plates, providing shoppers an unusual experience can make the product feel that much more special.
Find inspiration everywhere
In reworking a basic commodity used on a daily basis, an entrepreneur trying to innovate might find inspiration in unusual places
Never settle for one idea
Always develop at least three completely different design ideas for your project no matter how overwhelming this might seem. How do you know what’s good, until you’ve seen what’s bad? 36 Time Out Lisbon
Test and measure everything
You can’t change what you don’t measure and you can’t tell if a program or strategy is working if you are not faithfully testing, measuring and tracking your result. Time Out Lisbon 37
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