Mara Rhomberg: Innovation Is Always A Trend
One might think that the current situation is not so ideal for you to set up your own business, to say the least... Why was it the right decision for you to launch your brand anyway?
I agree that we are experiencing one of the most challenging times of our era. Since my vision for this brand was never a straight-forward retail concept, it might be considered the best time to launch a label like Mara Rhomberg, as there’s now so much discussion about what roles luxury and fashion will play in daily life.
Are the current innovations of the industry such as inclusion and sustainability already a matter of course for you?
Sustainability has always been a relevant topic in the development of the brand. In our case, given the depth of the collection, it was much more difficult to incorporate sustainable fabrics, especially with the struggle of meeting minimums in production. Due to the time involved in getting a collection shelf-ready, we consciously decided to break away from the traditional cycle, extending the availability of our articles to an entire year. This decision allows us to create seasonless staples and the chance to release season focused capsules.
The concept is based on high-quality essentials and is not taking a seasonal fashion schedule into consideration - is this the future of fashion?
Definitely, I hope that fashion will gradually gravitate in this direction. While it’s key for large players in fashion to slow down their pace, the charge for a more considered and thoughtful approach to fashion seems to be led by smaller contemporary brands in the market.
Your sales strategy is also new: pop-ups and an online store instead of the traditional distribution via boutiques?
The retail landscape has been struggling for many years now due to the growth of online retail. And especially for newcomers, it has become even more cut-throat. As a new brand, it is incredibly important to transmit the core values of the brand to its customers. For us, it was crucial to creating this experience as personal as possible. I wouldn’t say that the formats of pop-ups or trunk shows are new to the industry. It is more organization and effort for brands and maybe therefore less often pursued. As for an online store – this was crucial and needed to be included in our distribution strategy, giving our returning customers the possibility to access the collection.
Is this a recipe for success that can be pursued in the long term, or how do you see the future of your label?
It has always been important to us as a brand to have the chance to build personal and long-lasting relationships with those women who wear our pieces. The future is very exciting because the industry has been forced to reset itself.
Photos: Mara Rhomeberg
