Interview with Naomi Gunther, founder of the brand Gunther Paris

We were lucky enough to interview Naomi Gunther, a talented young designer, founder of the brand Gunther Paris!

GUNTHER is a contemporary Parisian luxury clothing brand. Their vision: dress the modern man, chic and relaxed, with comfortable cuts and responsible materials. Made in France, made in Paris laboratories, the brand works for a committed and ethical fashion and puts the environment at the center of its concerns.

Ciao Naomi. Grazie per aver accettato di rispondere ad alcune domande su di te e sul tuo brand.

Would you like to tell us about your studies and your professional training? When did you realise you wanted to become a fashion designer?

I have always been passionate about fashion and Art in general. After a 4 year BFA in Fashion Design at Parsons The New School for Design in New York, I came back to Paris and it was obvious for me I needed to start my own company. I met the person who is my actual business partner Gabin Ducourant whose marketing and business side combined with my creative side made GUNTHER possible.

We know that Gunther is a very young brand, born just two years ago with the end of your studies. What made you create something uniquely yours?

With GUNTHER, we are trying to create a new vision of luxury. The GUNTHER pieces represent the meeting of an old know-how and a modern aesthetic. The GUNTHER man also cares for a slower, more conscious and more unique fashion.

What does Gunther represent to you? What is the philosophy behind the brand?

If I had to sum up Gunther in 3 words it would be : quality, effortless-chic, and craftsmanship. The style I’m aiming at is to combine a French couture « savoir faire » (tailoring sur mesure, hand knitted pieces…) with a more urban, modern aesthetic. Quality is also very important to us, I try to only work with fine, soft, comfortable, and as much as I can natural materials.

Who are the fashion designers that inspire you?

I am forever inspired by Martin Margiela, because his designs reflect such a huge creativity, and he knows how to make a statement out of anything. His creativity goes beyond clothing. Raf Simons also, because he knows how to create a modern and youthful aesthetic while mastering the classics.

5. We really like your sense of aesthetic, would you like to talk about it in more depth? What is the “hallmark” of Naomi as a designer?
I’m very inspired by everything that is surrounding me. The biggest part of my inspiration is traveling in general. In all the places I visit I try to capture the vibes, the atmosphere in the streets, the sounds, the lights… I always take some pictures just walking in the streets and I try to use them as parts of my prints and motifs. I like to write also key words in a notebook to remember a feeling, an energy. Music also plays a big part in my inspiration and sets the mood for when I’m designing.

As a new generation artist, you care a lot about the theme “sustainability”. What does “sustainable fashion” mean to you? How does Gunther undertake to harm the environment as little as possible?
These are some of the things we do to try to harm the environment as little as possible : use of recycled materials, or natural materials as soon as possible (recycled cashmere, un-dyed fabric, buttons made of coconut, bamboo..)
Regarding production we try to produce everything in pre order so that we dont do overstocks, and over production and have as little waste as possible. We also try to reuse leftovers fabrics in a creative way
We are also working with a company called REPACK, which makes reusable packaging for sending our orders.

Let’s talk about today.. the Covid-19 slowed down the fashion industry: how did Gunther adapt to the contemporary context?
The period we are going through is not easy, but it forces us to adapt. We always worked in small team, with a small scale production so nothing really changed for us. We took time to reflect on the way we can produce in an even better way and we started to think about creative ways to present our collections (digital instead of physical). We also tried to focus on our community, how to engage better with them and gather them around creative challenges and communication .

Tell us about the fall/winter 2020 collection “Jour Blanc”, what inspired you?

Jour blanc means « whiteout ». It stands for a phenomenon that happened in the mountains when the weather is quite bad and when the ground and the sky merge. The inspiration of this collection is « after ski », a cocooning but chic collection to stay in your chalet. Warm colors that remind the fire place, cosy clothes with strong textures and oversize cuts.

If you had to choose among your garments the one that most represents you and that could become an “iconic” product, which one would you choose?
In all of our collections, we repeat several designs. We have a signature jacket with a digital print lining that changes every collection. Also we got famous thanks to a pants Offset wore in Paris Fashion week so we also repeat this design in all of collections in different collections

Finally, where do you see you and your brand in 5 years? What are your plans for the future?
We hope we will be able to make the brand more famous around the world, maybe have international retailers. Our goal is to continue to support french artisans while making the brand grow. We are currently preparing a digital film that will be released for Paris fashion week in January ! To support us dont hesitate to like and follow @guntherparis.

Gunther Paris products can be purchased on their official website.

If you liked this article, take a look at our interview with Alessandro Vigilante.

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Cristiana Avolio

Cristiana Avolio è una studentessa di Strategic Communication e ballerina di danze urbane. Direttamente da Napoli, vive a Milano dall’inizio dell’università. Appassionata di moda e collezionista incallita di scarpe, ama soprattutto lo streetwear. Inizia a lavorare per Wait fashion per poter scrivere di quello che le piace e imparare da persone che hanno le sue stesse passioni!