In an exclusive chat with Yemisi
Suleiman of Allure Magazine, (monitored by Trendy Gist Blog), Nigerian-born
designer, Nikki Khiran speaks on creating exotic, lady-like and individualistic
apparels as a way of life. The celebrity damsel who has been a promoter of
fabric and fashion in the industry over a decade now opens up on inspiration
behind her new resort collection, her style and the need for ladies to dress
for their age.
·
What is
the inspiration behind your newly launched ‘Resort Collection, Spring/Summer
2015?’
My thoughts were to create
a wardrobe of unique designs for a woman who is a global traveler, exotic, free-spirited,
sexy, yet lady-like, individualistic and confident. She could walk on the beach
in her tube dress, do lunch in her draped caftan, sundowners in her cat suit
and a-one shoulder toga or gladiator fringed dress for her gala night or
dinner! The collection is made up of jersey, silk chiffon, beaded tulle and
distressed knits, fabrics that are multi-functional, comfortable, beautiful,
yet easy to pack for travelling. 
·
What is
your favourite part about being a fashion designer?
I like bringing out a woman’s
best assets and showing beauty and diversity no matter her shape, size or
height. Also, seeing the joy on her face when her expectations are met makes
all the hard work worthwhile. Having a client call and telling me how great
they looked in my outfit makes my day
·
How do you
balance creativity with commerce?
That can be very difficult because
most creative people are geared towards the creative process and forget or know
very little about the commercial side of things; they forget that rent,
electricity, staff, generator, apart from fabric and trimming, costs have to be
factored into the cost of the garment. So, a lot of creative people rarely
break even. It’s a learning process; with time, you learn from your mistakes.
·
Who is
the Nikki Khiran woman?
The Nikki Khiran woman is
confident, individualistic as mentioned earlier with her own sense of style. She’s
feminine yet strong and doesn’t follow trends. She’s real woman- with real curves,
dresses to suit her curves, and does not feel the need to be a size 8 but to
look and feel good about herself.
·
What is
your evaluation of the fashion industry in Nigeria now?
In the past few years, the
Nigerian fashion industry has suddenly boomed! There are a lot of new and
emerging talents so there is variety. When we started here almost 12 years ago,
there was very little to choose from in terms of variety. Although, I still
feel we have a long way to go with our finishing, infrastructure and raw
materials still remain enormous challenges.
·
What is
elegance to you and what is your definition of style?
To me, style and elegance are
interwoven. Style is knowing what to wear, how to wear and when to wear it. It’s
being confident enough to try different looks and knowing what works for you. Elegance
is the individuality, grace and confidence that a woman excludes without trying
too hard.
·
Do you
feel that women should change the way they dress as they get older?
Yes! There are certain outfits
that are less appropriate, the older one gets. It’s sad when you see a woman at
a certain gracefully but if you have a good figure, you can get away with almost
anything. We can’t all be Tina Turner who can wear anything. Sometimes, being
covered up can be very sexy.
·
What would
you splurge on?
I would rather travel to exotic
locations, stay in nice hotels and have a great holiday than buy jewellery. I also
don’t scrimp on my skin care-body products, perfumes and lingerie.
I have to have nice living space;
my comfort is more important to me than expensive jewellery and designer bags.
·
What’s
next for Nikki Khiran?
I would like to pass knowledge to
the next generation and know that I have impacted people’s lives. I have several
things in the pipeline but wouldn’t like to talk about them until they have
matured.
Recently, we opened a show room
in Abuja, in Wuse 2. We thank God; we are getting great feedback. For now, that
is my immediate focus; creating more awareness for our new store in Abuja and
growing my home ware shop in Lagos. Our focus is for Nikki Khiran to be
lifestyle brand, not just fashion and accessories.
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