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An Interview with Liam Hodges after his AW18 runway show ‘Everybody’s Free To Feel Good’

“Ignoring all the bullshit”

Congrats on your show, we loved it. What inspired the collection?

The collection was inspired by a search for fun. Mixing Ian Dury’s humorous idea of punk with films and tv shows I liked, the gunge tank on get your own back, and Mr Blobbys trippy aesthetic LOL.

Do you have a specific buyer or scene in mind when designing?

For this season we where really trying to push what we do, keeping our current market/consumer but pushing new silhouettes and product lines, introducing tailoring and hand worked artisanal denim. We’ve definitely got a customer but they can only be expected to buy so many patchwork tracksuits.

Do you think yours is a brand only really suited to one scene or genre or do you think it has scope for a broader audience? 

I definitely think it has a broader scope, my influences and references span beyond the current zeitgeist. But also in todays world people and scenes aren’t dependant on belonging to one idea, we have so much information at our finger tips we curate ourselves through our likes and dislikes. It’s not as simple as I’m a skin head I only wear DMs and a crombie’ its more complex.

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Who would you most love to see wearing your designs? 

Anyone who wears em with pride, and gets as much out of them as I put in.

Is there’s a brand you would like to design for or collaborate with?

I would love to collaborate with a number of brands, I think its an exciting way of working, taking someone else’s work and making a middle ground joining links between the two. in terms of brands I would wanna work with I guess Levi’s, Spliffy, Zoo York. That could be fun.

When was the pivotal point when you realised that you wanted to fully concentrate on starting your own brand and not work below someone else or in a bigger design house?

There wasn’t, it was just a multitude of things and positions I found myself in, lulu and fashion east giving me my first presentation, and gr8 buying it….. thats when it was possible.

Whats the hardest thing about starting your own brand?

Ignoring all the bullshit, and remembering who you are.

How do you find being a young designer? It feel’s like you’ve nearly hit the bar of being an established designer and look to be getting stronger every season. What do you think the key to this is?

Same as above. LOL.

Lastly, If you could give some advice to to your 18 year old self what would it be?

Stop straightening your hair.

Interview by Cora Delaney
Photography by Olivia Jankowska

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