All misfortune has its bright side and the current economic climate is no exception because it is forcing us to rethink many concepts that we have taken for granted. So far high levels of consumption seemed reasonable because, -among other things- it was one of the legs that held western economies. However, for some time now, slow movements are emerging suggesting a change in our unstoppable spending pace.

Fashion is probably the best reflection of our consumerist excesses. Nowadays we do not buy based on the quality and utility of the things we can get, but on quantity and the amount of social status it will provide.

Being more aware of the way we shop is easy if we make the effort, and there are two tips that always work: not buying impulsively and making lists by eliminating those things that we deem unnecessary. Also, be selective with your wardrobe; worshiping each of the pieces it contains is more satisfying, making the ritual of wearing something much more simple and fun.

The resources of the Earth and the human race are not infinite, therefore sensible spending is vital to ensure the continuity of the planet. We must change our mentality being aware of this fact: consuming more does not necessarily mean a better life.

Source : Allure-Allure & El Fasionista (drawing)

Part II of the interview (part I and video here)

CP: Many of my friends are completely crazy about your bags (you know that) and you have a good visibility and a big fan club on the internet, especially on blogs. Do you read some of them?

JD: Not a lot because I don’t have the time. Some times, the girl in the office shows me the blogs and I’m really amazed. It is funny but at the same time I don’t understand how people can spend time writing about a bag. It makes me laugh a lot, but it is another world for me. I’m really pleased. It is interesting because sometimes you get really positive or really negatives things. It is interesting because it comes from people who say what they think. So it helps me to build the collection, but I don’t have that much time to spend on the internet.

CP: Slow wear seems to be the next big thing, many small labels were invited to the last Prêt-à-porter Salon. Do you think that a new designer can start without being ethical?

JD: I don’t know, it is hard to say. There is no rule to begin. If there was a rule everybody would use the same rule and everybody would have the same way. I don’t know if it helps or not. I don’t know if they are obliged or not. I don’t think so yet, but it will come. Now, the problem is that with all the economical pressure we have, it is very hard to launch a new label. I’m really lucky I began ten years ago. Since the day I began to now, there not many designers that came out, because of economical problems it becomes really hard to launch a new label. I was lucky.

CP: Is it more expensive to produce bio-friendly products?

JD: No. It is not more expensive. I’m not paying my leather more than anybody else. Nothing is more expensive, if you just take care.

CP: It is a false idea.

JD: Yes, it is a false idea. Bio things are simple, it is just the material you are using which is bio. After, you just do what you want. It is more about using different metallic pieces that cost a lot of money. So if the leather costs a little bit more you have to be careful about what you are using inside the bags to keep a normal price. So no, I don’t think it costs more money to do it.

CP: Do you consider slow fashion as a sort of luxury? You create objects for the duration, for a life span? You buy a bag for ten - fifteen years, it is a luxury because you buy one thing and you transmit it to your kids.

JD: That’s what I’m dreaming to do. We are trying to work that way, I’m always saying to my clients just buy one bag and keep it for years. But the pressure of society makes people change the colour of their bag every season. I wish one day they will keep it for ten years, which is not going be good for my business, but I don’t care! I’ll go to the South of France and I’ll make cheese.

CP: Is there a men’s line scheduled?

JD: No, all my friends are asking me and some times I do bags for my friends but I’m not interested in seducing men!

CP: What about the future? A come-back in the apparel?

JD: I don’t know, it is always the same problem. I would love to make dresses again but I don’t want to be eaten by the fashion business. I love it and I want to continue to love it. It is good to be far away from it because it helps me to keep dreaming, and I need to dream to be able to create. If I’m too much into that business I don’t dream anymore. When you see the reality you don’t dream anymore. So I’m trying to stay far away from it to be able to dream and to create. That is very important to me.

CP: You are like a rebel

JD: No, I’m not a rebel. I’m just someone simple who is trying to do his job. I’m not looking to be a star otherwise I would have played in movies. It is not my job to be famous; my job is to work with people and to work with my hands. I’m just trying to follow my way.

Read the french version on his blog : www.lemodalogue.fr

Jerome Dreyfuss talks about ‘agricouture’ and Slow Fashion in an exclusive interview by the French Fashion blogger ‘Le Modalogue’.

Here is the complete transcript of the discussion, part #1. Part #2 will be published tomorow.

Christian Poulot: Tell us about agricouture. What is it exactly?

Jérôme Dreyfuss: It is a little complicated. Agricouture is an engagement I have taken for my clients. I give the guarantee to my clients that the animals we are using are coming from land where they live free, which is something really important. They don’t live inside. They are outside running, eating normally. I’m giving the guarantee to my clients that we try as much as we can, not to use any chemical products when tanning the skin. We are also giving the guarantee that the water we use to tan the skin is recycled, which is very important. When I began - things have changed in ten years - but when I began with my leather, all the factories were not recycling the water. In 2012, I think they will all be obliged to do it. At the beginning none of them were doing it and it was hard to find somebody who would recycle the water and not put the pollution outside of the factories. Basically that is the guarantee that I give to my clients.

CP: Where do you make your bags? In a small factory, in an “atelier”?

JD: Yes, I only work in really small factories in Belgium, in Morocco, in Tunisia, in Portugal and in Spain. Unfortunately for us all those industries are dead in France. I work with small “ateliers” and - I as like to say - with little old guys who really know the work. That’s why I’m interested in working with those people because I’m learning a lot with them. It’s important to keep working those kind of small companies in order to learn from them, and to transmit their knowledge to other people. That’s really what makes French luxury, so I think it is my role to work with those people as well.

CP: Do you know why premium brands (except some) or even mass market brands do not communicate on bio (organic)? Do you think it would have a serious impact if some big names showed the way, lead the path.

-          JD: I think they will. I’m not sure they will communicate on it, but I’m sure they will do it because one day they will be obliged to do it. We are going to have laws to oblige people to work with clean products. So everybody is coming to it really slowly. Everyone keeps talking to me about agricouture, apparently I was one of the first to use those materials and those techniques. Now what I see when I’m travelling is other labels using those kinds of products, which is good. I don’t want to be the only one doing it. I hope everybody will. I’m sure big companies will do it, but for big companies it takes a lot to organize and to change factories, it takes time for them. It is easy for me because I am small.

CP: About creation, when we are talking about bio attitude, people are still thinking of something boring: poor colours, poor shapes, etc. But it is certainly not your case, all of your bags have many details, and seem to be very thoughtful. How do you create a new bag, where do you find inspiration?

JD: I find the inspiration by watching my wife and my friends. I’m interested in architecture from the 30s to the 60s. I’m amazed by people like Noguchi, George Nelson, or Jean Prouvé. People who were trying to make furniture for the mass market. They were trying to make everything practical and easy, it was kind of the first slow furniture. Meaning it had to be practical, it had to be cheap. I’m amazed by those designers. When I’m designing a bag, I’m always thinking of what my wife and my friends need to put inside it. I’m designing the bag around what they need to put inside. That’s why there are so many pockets or always a little lamp inside. I’m trying to make a woman’s life easier, which is really hard!

CP: You don’t seem to be under the influence of trends.

JD: No, I am not really interested in fashion. I used to be more than interested in fashion, I used to dream about fashion. But I don’t think fashion is that creative today. I don’t think that things are happening in the fashion world. Fashion became a big business and I’m not interested in Madonna, in Mariah Carey and in all those things.

CP: Not anymore

JD: Not anymore. I was when I was 20, but I’m 30 and I’m not amazed by those people. They are not real people, everything is fake, their boobs are fake, their mouths are fake, their voices are fake. I’m more interested in real things. I’m working a lot with young artists. I have a whole crew of friends who are painters, all kinds of artists. They are more creative than anybody in the fashion business, and they inspire me very much. They don’t have the pressure we have in the fashion business, where we all need to be in the trend, bla bla bla, and all those stupid things. I don’t care about that. I’m more interested in what I feel and just trying to seduce women.

Read the french version on his blog : www.lemodalogue.fr

A new image, more in line with the times

During the marvellous years of economic boom we have enjoyed, we have constantly bought and thrown out thousands of tonnes of all kinds of products, including clothes. Every day, dustmen found piles of clothes which people had only worn once: the “throwaway” culture taken to the extreme.

Second-hand clothes were talked about a lot, but why did the idea never take off? Thanks to Amancio e Isidoro, fashion clothing was relatively cheap, so we always preferred a new dress to a used one. It’s the same reason why, for many years, it was more usual to buy a flat under construction (and be the first to use it) than to buy an older flat requiring improvements.

However, the age of waste is over. The time for ostentation, the clearly visible logo and the 2,000 Euro it bag has come to an end. But does that mean we can no longer enjoy fashion, shopping and the latest trends? No, indeed not! The new consumer goes shopping as often as before, but:

- She looks for her favourite brands in outlet stores, private sales or the Internet.
- She buys in the Salvation army stores, well-known in first world countries for their network of second-hand stores where they raise money for their charity activities.
- She buys clothes which will last for more than one season, in some cases even with a guarantee of duration of over ten years.
- She rents her children’s clothes (children grow too quickly).
- She arranges bring and buy sales with her best friends.
- She gets discounts for returning clothes to the shops after use

And all this does not imply stinginess or misery. Our capacity for adaptation to the environment is what has helped us survive as a species. This is the real climate change.

The spanish version on Gratis Total ’s blog