Making the Jump From Art To Fashion

 
Part 1 of 2 [view part 2] from the interview with George Bunker. He and co-founder, Justin Mansfield, of London-based brand, BEAU HOMME, re-imagine conventional menswear to offer a broadened scope of personal expression. After meeting George and Justin at London Fashion Week Men’s I had the pleasure of interviewing George to learn some unexpected facts about the brand they have launched together. 

How do you balance the commercial and creative needs of the brand?
As you go along you learn this. It starts as a creative venture but you become more attuned to the needs of your consumer. It’s been a learning experience. Justin is a pattern-cutter-supreme, so I’ll throw out an idea, or do a concept sketch, and Justin can realize them, and then it follows with ping-tonging until we can achieve the intended finalized, product at a competitive price point. So the balance between the commercial and the creative HAVE to be seriously considered and balanced constantly.  It actually requires a great deal of “balancing” than anything else. It’s a really fine line between what’s beautiful and disgusting. I think it’s such a fine line.

Really? Those seem like such opposites!
I don’t think so at all. There’s a type of beauty that the French call “jolie laid” which means “ugly beautiful” and it’s the most captivating of all. It walks the line and makes something very alluring. An ugly prettiness adds a complexity that requires more investigation. 

So you are more excited when a design is not merely pretty?
Yes, absolutely. It’s far more interesting to be intriguing than beautiful. That said, whether a garment is beautiful or jolie laid, the most important thing for a consumer is that they feel like the best version of themselves when they’re wearing the garment.

Do you have other people around to offer a second opinion design, like a mentor?
I think you can have advisers but think the term mentor is a confusing one. I suppose Justin and I  “mentor” one another in that way – as each of us is the result of our joint opinion. Between us we balance the creative vs. commercial needs of the brand, as referenced to your question before. 

What has been your proudest achievement with your brand?
Oh… that we’re still here? 

[Laughter] That the interns come back each day?
Yes. That we keep going season to season. I can’t imagine doing this on my own. Justin and I have had to sacrifice so much, and that we’ve been able to work going on four years is a real testament to our progress.

What has been the biggest lesson you have learned in these 4 years?
The biggest lesson has been in realizing the other unconventional modes of creativity required to run an emerging business. A label is something you can throw a couple million at and then you have one. One of the good things initially about working within a budget is that it teaches you to be innovative and resourceful when your original vision can’t be executed. It teaches you to solve problems. That’s the biggest thing I’ve learned. It’s about solving problems and design is only 5% of the business; the rest is working with factories, order minimums, and spreadsheets. There are many ways to be creative other than using a pencil and sketchbook. You can be creative in how you negotiate, how you structure your day, and how you communicate via email.

What do you do to relax or have fun?
I don’t really have time for it! You really have to live the business. It’s all consuming; especially the first few years. It’s becoming a little easier. But the first few years we worked 16-hour days, 7 days a week. Only now am I starting to develop a social life again. So I’m going work on the fun part! But when you really love what you do, there will always be moments of fun.

Thank you for your time George. I wish you continued success! Click to read Part 2 of the interview with George. For more brand info and images visit the BEAU HOMME website, browse Instagram, or starting Thursday, 16 March, shop the products at their newest stockist, KWALEO.