Friday, April 12, 2013

An Interview with Canadian Fashion Designer Christopher Bates

Designer Christopher Bates
Victoria West: You just showed your fall collection at World MasterCard Toronto Fashion Week, did you meet the expectations that you had for this season’s Fashion Week? 

Christopher Bates: Absolutely, it was a great experience. The show was well received, there have been lots of great reviews and some new customers.

VW: When your new collection is going to be available in stores? 

CB: First delivery will be in late August, in the same stores as before – both locations of Gotstyle in Toronto (Bathurst and Distillery District) and Channer’s in Waterloo.

VW: What does it take to a Canadian fashion designer to show at Toronto Fashion Week, what are the steps to be taken, from the registration till the actual show on the runway? 

CB: If you haven’t shown before, then you have to apply. It’s a fairly detailed application process, you have to submit everything – lookbooks, line sheets, detailed information on your past, your plans, your stores. Then you have to send samples, which will be reviewed. I have already shown before, so for me it was just a matter of expressing my interest in doing a show and paying the fees.

VW: How do you acquire your models for the shows? 

CB: I have worked with a lot of guys here over the years. I contact agencies and book models. Also, a lot of the guys are my friends and I ask them if they want to do it – they don’t do it for free necessarily, but it’s great, it really helps me.

VW: Have you started working on your next spring collection yet? 

CB: Yes, absolutely. I haven’t started making the prototypes yet, but I’ve started with the design process, and I’m going to start making the prototypes very soon.

VW: Besides your spring collection, do you work on any other projects right now? 

CB: I work on many-many other projects. I’m doing some consulting design for another large fashion brand right now, I can’t say what it is, but it’s taking all my time at the moment. I’m also doing a couple of homeware projects – pillows, carpets, things like that. I’m also doing a lot of custom work – custom suits, raincoats, dress shirts, this business is really booming right now. I also dress a lot of celebrities for Juno Awards. So yes, my schedule is pretty full right now.

VW: Can we expect to see you at Toronto Fashion Week again? 

CB: Yes, for sure. Next season I’ll be showing either in Toronto, or in Montreal, or both – this would be the plan.

VW: Do you read fashion magazines? 

CB: Yes, I do. There is a number of magazines for men or for both men and women, and I read both – men’s, women’s, unisex.

VW: What are your favorites? 

CB: I like Fashion, the men’s and the women’s version; Dress to Kill; Product; Flare, which is a classic; Sharp. There is also Women’s Wear Daily that I like, which is more of a newspaper type of publication, but overall this is really my favorite source for fashion news.

VW: How do you like to spend your free time? 

CB: I go to the gym or play soccer, I do sports 7 days a week, that’s really important to me, I love being healthy. It’s a stress reliever as well, I feel so much better after exercising. I listen to music, I read books, I cook, I host a lot of dinner parties, I like spending time with friends and family, I love to travel, I love movies.

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Follow Christopher Bates on ChristopherBates.com, Facebook, Twitter.

Photo credit: Courtesy of Christopher Bates

8 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you Antonella, I appreciate it.
      Have a great week ahead!

      Delete
  2. Hi sweety, congrats on this great interview, I loving learning more about the creative minds behind fashion!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Sam, thank you for your kind words.
      Enjoy your week!

      Delete
  3. Buna Victoria,
    Ai un tag de la mine :)
    http://aboutwomenandnotonly.blogspot.com/2013/04/tag-daca-eram.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Buna Mihaela, multumesc pentru tag, il voi face zilele acestea. :)

      Delete

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