Whether we label ourselves as a creative, designer, or an artist, we can never deny the fact that our success won’t be possible without the unsung heroes of our industry.
The fashion world has often been antagonized as something that’s superficial, with all of the glitz and glamorous lifestyle that it espouses, manifesting in almost every fashion week and red carpet premieres. At a glance, you have all of these gorgeous, expensive couture dresses and well-tailored suits that upon wearing, can instantly make you stand out amongst the crowd. While this may be true, in order for any fashion house, brand, or designer to reach this level of success, they must first put in all the sweat and tears to pass through in this cut-throat industry.
It’s been said time and time again that while many have tried, only a few prevailed. Setting up your own fashion brand requires a tedious process—from penetrating a very niche market, producing ingenious designs, to making yourself known from various parts of the world. However, while many publications have already highlighted the triumphs of fashion designers, we really haven’t shared the limelight to those people behind every creative individual, who in all honesty, rightfully deserves so, too.
In every atelier, designers have a team of seamstresses and tailors. They are usually the ones behind the sewing machines, cutting the suit’s patterns, or even measuring the clients. So, in hindsight, apart from the creativity that innately flows in artists, they also need a brilliant team who has a vivid imagination on how they can make the envisioned gown into a reality together.
A Symbiotic Relationship
You’ve probably heard of the powerful life poetry of John Donne’s No Man Is An Island, which expresses the idea that human beings do badly when they believe that they are self-sufficient and can do anything on their own. Now, this brilliant 17th-century poem still speaks volumes up to this day and age. In fact, it’s a great reminder to the fashion industry that whatever designers dream to produce, they can’t do it all by themselves—they also need to rely on others and collaborate to bring out the best possible outcome.
According to the impalpable Michael Cinco, “I always want my M5 team to be treated well with love and respect and give them a relaxed and happy work environment. These talented people are highly skilled professionals. And as my clothes are mostly couture beaded gowns, I can’t finish a couture piece alone—I need their creative skilled hands.”
Michael Leyva also shares the same sentiments, saying that his team is actually his second family. “They are the heroes behind every gown that we make. And while we may have individual goals, we have the same mission: to make every gown to be sewn with love.”
Now, speaking of the real significance of collaborative effort, Rajo Laurel also saw this first-hand with his team as they face the pandemic. “For the first time in 26 years, I am working distantly from my team and this has proven to be both a challenge and triumph. I have always been very hands-on with my team,” he says. “But because of the pandemic, I have learned to fully trust them. I have always been a great believer in delegating tasks. Now more than ever, this has proven to be the only way that we can make things happen.”
“Proper training is key and I follow a buddy system where apprentices shadow more experienced ones so that they learn from each other—it’s a symbiotic relationship,” the veteran designer adds. “I am deeply proud of my team as we really made this difficult situation a success.”
Designer to the stars, Neric Beltran, also agrees. “It’s truly a collaborative process, and we learn from each other. It’s a back and forth of discussions, sleepless nights, and repeating garments over and over again,” he says. “Your relationship as a team will directly affect the products that you produce. Everyone has a valuable role, opinion, or talent in the process of making every single piece that we do.”
And for Los-Angeles based designer Puey Quiñones, he believes that this is about paying it forward as well. “My team in LA studied fashion design and worked for big fashion houses. They give me very good tips and help me with my draping and designs on how to achieve them,” he explains. “I don’t have formal training in sewing and pattern making. So, when I’m in Manila, I share my learnings from my LA team to my Filipino seamstresses and pattern makers, which makes them happy because they learn from it.”
Mabuhay Kayo!
Doing business in the midst of the pandemic is immensely challenging. Apart from major health concerns, we’re experiencing a global economic recession to the extent that the Philippines’ GDP has already plunged to its lowest drop since 1985. But regardless of these obstacles that we’re currently facing, it was instinctive for the fashion industry to do its part in helping our front-liners in spite of the serious hazards posed by COVID-19. Local designers together with their teams made it a point to create and donate PPEs and face masks so that each front-liner could be well-protected.
So, having recognized the dedication, passion, and sacrifices all of these teams of seamstresses, world-class designers sincerely extend their appreciation to their teams who have unfailingly supported them through thick and thin.
“I want them to feel and know that I have their backs, that I appreciate them fully, and I will do everything in my power to keep their job secured and to see this pandemic through,” Rajo wholeheartedly vows. “They all know that they are like family to me. Most of them have been with me for decades and I will not let them down come hell or high water. This pandemic is a way for us to gather strength from each other and we will survive this only if we do it together.”
Puey also explains how his team tremendously helped him through the global health crisis. “I wanna thank them because they are the reason why my atelier is still running. Without them, there’s no business. I already housed my seamstresses in Manila, so they don’t have to travel back and forth for everyone’s safety. Tailors and seamstresses and everyone behind a fashion house are the designers’ heroes.”
With full honesty, Michael Cinco shares, “it has never been an exasperating experience dealing with the current global situation. As you can see, we are in an industry that requires constant interaction with people. And the new normal demands that we limit our movement and be individually responsible. I am very thankful that I have a seasoned team that’s resilient and ready for any work-related challenges. I just want to tell them not to lose faith and believe in their talents. In God’s perfect time we shall overcome this crisis and be better versions of ourselves. Thank you for supporting me and I love all of you.”
Finally, keeping his message short yet full of unconditional love, Michael Leyva attests that his team was, is, and will always be “an important part of where I am now.” In the long run, perhaps we can all agree when we say that behind every successful designer is a brilliant, caring, committed, and passionate team of tailors who just want to share the joy that fashion brings to a lot of people, especially in the midst of turmoil.
At mula naman po sa MEGA, taos-puso po namin gustong iparating ang aming lubos na pasasalamat sa lahat ng bahagi ng buhay disenyo sa industriyang kinagisnan natin—kina tatay, nanay, ate at kuya. Maraming salamat po sa dedikasyon, tulong at walang sawang sakripisyo upang tugunan ang pangangailangan ng sambayanang Pilipino—lalo na’t ang ating front liners—sa paggawa ng bawat PPE at face mask para sa proteksyon ng bawat isa sa halip ng mapanganib na coronavirus na kinakaharap ng Pilipinas. Kaya para sa mga totoong bayani sa larangan ng moda at sining, mabuhay po kayo!
