NEW YORK - When fashion and design icon Josie Natori launched her Spring/Summer 2012 collection at the Asia Society in New York last September, she proudly showcased her Filipino roots.
For this new collection, Natori highlighted her signature East-West look by seamlessly combining style and sophistication with form and function with a sprinkling of elegance and glamor. For the fashion mogul, it is all about the Asian aesthetics and sensibilities and the Western contemporary lifestyle, and this has made Natori a distinct global brand which has survived these tough economic times.
The Natori accessories the models wore during the presentation were all custom-made in the Philippines, using local fabrics and materials.
“These are the kinds of things that I love doing. I’m very proud that they’re all made in the Philippines, alam mo hand-woven ito by an amazing artisan sa Bulacan. She actually just does placemats and we challenged her to make it into a bag,” Natori told the Asian Journal while showing us her purse for the evening.
That is how Natori thinks—the much-used ‘out-of-the-box’ perspective. How else could one envision that an abaca placemat can be made into a chic and fashionable evening purse? Or a small dish made out of capiz shells can be transformed into a belt buckle?
“The accessories were made to enhance the clothes to give a bold statement to our simple shapes. We’ve been doing accent handbags as well, it’s a very sculptural bag made from abaca. By spring 2013, we should have a full accessories line, from shoes to bags,” she added.
The accomplished businesswoman has been in the fashion industry for almost 35 years and with the help of her husband Ken, they have made Natori into an empire that also includes intimate apparel lines, ready to wear collections, home and bath products, and fragrances.
Not bad for someone who started out as a Wall Street investment banker in the early 70s, working her way up to become the first female vice president of investment banking of Merril-Lynch.
By 1976, Josephina Almeda Cruz, the rising Wall Street star had married Ken Natori, then Executive Managing Director of Smith Barney, and had given birth to her son Kenneth Jr. By 1977, looking for new challenges and bored with her position, then 30-year-old Josie was eager to start something new.
The fashion industry came calling when Josie on a whim, brought an embroidered blouse from the Philippines to a buyer at Bloomingdale’s. The buyer encouraged her to turn it into a sleep shirt, Natori took the advice and she was in business!
“At the time, lingerie was either lewd or frumpy,” said Natori, who toiled to fill the niche in between. She want back to her drawing board and worked on a 24-piece collection of lingerie, and within three weeks, she had $350,000 in orders.
During our chat after the fashion show, Natori excitedly disclosed that they were opening two new shops in the Philippines by the end of this year.
Natori said, “I really look forward to being able to dress more Filipinos.”
The big fashion event happened last week in Manila when the global brand opened its first boutiques outside the United States, at the Rustan’s Makati and the Rustan’s Tower at The Shangri-La Plaza.
“I’m always thankful for my Philippine heritage,” she told us, wearing her signature huge earrings that framed her thin face.
The expansion of Natori as a global lifestyle brand is happening during the time when the United States is still feeling the recession. Does that make the fashion industry recession-proof then?
“Nobody is ever protected from the recession,” Natori said. “As long as you keep making things that women want, that’s what it is about. Make them want it, you can’t keep giving her the same thing. Give her a reason to buy something new and make her feel special and make her feel good.”
As founder and chief executive officer of Natori, she explained that it took some time before she decided to put up boutiques in the Philippines. For the company, it is all about the right timing. When she noticed a remarkable growth in the Asian market recently, she knew it was time.
Throughout its almost 35-year history, Natori has built a solid and global lifestyle brand.
“We have a following of women who feel that when they buy Natori. They feel special, it makes them feel glamorous. Why not? The indulgence is a necessity,” she added.
For now, Josie is excited to be working with the Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry. Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo had requested her to be involved with the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions or CITEM, whose core function is the promotion of Philippine products and services in the world market.
“I believe in the creativity and the talent of Filipinos. I am so inspired by many amazing artists in the Philippines. I would love to be able to help in whatever way I can to get them more recognition,” Natori shared.
Working with DTI pro-bono is one of Natori’s ways of giving back to the country. She believes that with proper knowledge and exposure, Filipino exporters can successfully market their products worldwide.
For the newcomers intending to pursue a career in fashion and design, Natori had this to say: “Have a point of view and stay with it. Have a vision and understand the market place. It is not easy, it takes a lot of hard work, but the possibilities are there.”
What’s next for the Natori brand?
“We’re big in the United States now, how about being bigger in the Philippines and in Asia?” Natori replied.
With the recent opening of two boutiques in her home country, the rest of Asia can be rest assured that the Natori brand is very well on its way to global domination.
(www.asianjournal.com)
(NYNJ Dec 9-15, 2011 LifeEASTyle pg.2)
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