INTERVIEW #57 WENDY MALINOVSKY

Based in: Brussels / Paris

Founded in: 2018 (including 2 years off)

Founded by: Wendy Malinovsky

Stores: Shipping worldwide - some creations are available in 4 concept stores in France 

Price range: From 50 euros for a shirt to 180-240 euros for a jacket

Instagram: @wendy_malinovsky

Hi Wendy! So happy to have you and your amazing creations featured on A Sustainable Closet. You’re a true inspiration and your creativity goes BEYOND! “Colorful clothes for cool kids” is what your website says, which we love. Now, how would you describe your concept “Wendy Malinovsky” further and why did you start your brand? 

My concept is to recycle forgotten fabrics from our childhood to make contemporary clothes: do with what already exists. At the very beginning I started my brand because I had trouble finding very colorful and slightly quirky adult clothing. I grew up in Paris where a lot of people dress in black, and to me it was a bit depressing. I wanted to be able to offer those who wanted it a little Proust’s madeleine from childhood; a touch of carelessness, fun and sweetness.

I read that you’re “a child’s soul buried under a rainbow of colors”, what does this description mean to you?

I think that's how my friends would describe me. Despite the passing years, I like to keep in me the carefree and lightness of childhood and one of the best ways I have to express it is through colors. If you look for me in the street you can be sure to see me very quickly.

What is your sustainability profile?

I produce everything myself in my workshop in Brussels using recycled materials such as bedspreads, sheets, duvets etc. Most of my pieces are unique, which strengthens the bond between the buyer and the object. I like the idea that the fabric once belonged to a grandmother and that it now becomes a contemporary garment; in this way clothes have stories to tell us. With my scraps of fabric I make scrunchies, bumbags, purses to try to throw away as little as possible.For my packaging I use recycled paper that I find in recycling centers in Paris. 

How and where are the products produced and how do you choose your designs? 

All products are produced in my workshop in Brussels by my little hands.I draw a model that I will then decline in many colors and patterns depending on the fabrics that I find to recycle. The kimono jacket is the brand's most emblematic model.

Where do you find inspiration (other than your grandmother who always dressed in pink, so cute)? 

I had the chance to live in Japan; country that inspires me a lot with their relationship to eternal youth, the sweetness of childhood, oversize shapes and kimono. For the visual identity of my brand, I draw a lot of inspiration from the 70s and 80s, the patterns were so much more fun at that time! Traveling which for me is the best way to get inspired by discovering other cultures, their relation to colors, traditional clothes, graphics, gastronomy and so on.

Did you always love the same colorful & happy style, or has it changed throughout the years for your own style and for your designs? 

I grew up in a very colorful house so I think I've always been sensitive to the energy conveyed by colors. But my style was really accentuated during my textile design studies where we learned to work with colors. It was from this moment that I really became aware of the therapeutic power that colors could have. I have never felt so good since dressing very colorfully every day; immediately people in the street come to talk to you, smile and that's a small victory in Paris!

Where do you see yourself and your brand in 10 years? 

I think I would like to be closer to nature. I miss the mountains and the snow so much. I'm not sure I want to do only fashion all my life. But maybe something more eclectic bringing together all the things I love the most;  like own a very colorful little cafe in front of the mountains where we could enjoy good vegetarian meals with hot chocolate and buy some upcycled creations?

What do you think needs to change in the fashion industry to make it more sustainable? 

Stop using animal materials, overproducing, using chemicals and toxic products,transport from the other side of the world, miserable wages and so on. It’s a difficult change because the big companies unfortunately don't care very much about the environment but only to the money. So I think the change as to come from the consumer by stop buying from the big fast fashion brands, stop buying much more than we need and focus on vintage and apps like vinted or buy from small ethical business. 

What do you believe is “greenwashing” and what can producers and consumers do to avoid it? 

Greenwashing for me is making the customer believe that he is buying ethical when i’ts not true.

For example when the huge fast fashion companies run advertising campaigns declaring themselves ethical when we know well that they are the cause of ecological disasters.To avoid this, the best thing is not to buy fast fashion and to learn as much as possible about where and how it’s produced. 

You reuse all leftover leather and fabric, which I’m really a fan of. The “zero waste” ambition, is that something more brands should be able to do, according to you? 

We must stop overproducing and throwing away because we are in a race against time towards an ecological disaster. Producing with what we already have is the future and should be widely democratized; it's not normal that we still throw away so much in our time. I stopped using leather three years ago but I found my skins in the past in second-hand warehouses where there was so much to recycle rather than buy new, there are so many forgotten things just waiting to be used. Moreover, using fabric scraps, brands could recycle and create other products.