Casanova: They will take your hearts

4 апр. 2019 г.
5 мин. чтения

Three completely different personalities with different fates that have never been associated with the world of fashion. They started from the very beginning and were able to realize themselves as designers without having the slightest experience, but at the same time having a great inspiration to create and create. Wearing clothes of their brand, every man can create an image from a bright and unstoppable dandy to a serious and successful businessman. The brand Casanova, having entered the US market, became quite popular among the younger generation and was invited to participate in Fashion Week in Los Angeles in 2019 (LAFW FW2019). Three founders of the brand, three designers have kindly agreed to give an interview to our Style Society Magazine.

PROFILE:

Name: Luca Graci

Date of birth: 01/03/1997

Education: Fordham University (Fall 2015) Cuny Queens College (Fall 2016- Present)

Interests: cars, watches, traveling, science, history, art

Instagram ID: @lucagraci

Name: Salvatore Graci

Date of birth: 11/12/1994

Education: Cuny Queens College

Interests: Cars, travel, watches, nutrition , hunting, cooking

Instagram ID: @salvo_graci

Name: Angelo Acquista

Date of birth: 11/06/1993

Education: Marist College

Interests: Cars, rock n roll, yachting , martial arts

Instagram ID: @aacquista93

SS: Please introduce yourself to our readers.

CN: Our names are Salvatore Graci, Luca Graci, and Angelo Acquista – the three of us make up the creative team at CASANOVA. Being such young talent – we had the objective of creating a brainchild that was larger than all of us individually. Not having a background in fashion – we had several years of research and development on everything from trends, manufacturing, niche markets, techniques, etc.

SS: What is fashion for you? What inspires you?

CN: Fashion can be anything. For us everything from nature to culture embodies fashion and vice versa. Everything for us is under the umbrella of fashion.

SS: Tell us about your brand Casanova? How did you get this idea to create your own brand?

CN: CASANOVA for us meant blending our identities into a tangible experience. The hardest task was filtering clothing and making it a CASANOVA product. Not only do we want to provide a high standard for clothing but hope to broaden our scope for the future. Currently we are a menswear brand handmade by skilled artisans in the various regions of Italy. We identify ourselves with being an avant-guard label - experimental in vision -fusing together authentic Italian and international street culture. We began to conceptualize the vision we had when we hit a quarter life crisis out of school and were miserable in the fields we were in. Our formal educational backgrounds ranged from accounting to philosophy - adding to our complex and dynamic characteristics.

SS: Do you adhere to some basic concept for your brand or are you more open to anything new?

CN: Of course we adhere to basic design principles – all of our pieces are essentially timeless pieces adapted for current trends which make them more relevant to the market. We are definitely open to anything stylistically but always make sure to fit our luxury street look.

SS: Tell us about your latest collection presented at LAFW FW 2019?

CN: Our collection featured at LAFW was not only our first time doing a runway show, but also the first time creating a linear design principle based on inspiration from a specific memory from our childhood in Sicily -which was our love of hunting and appreciation of nature – while at the same time filtering it through a contemporary urban setting. Our collection featured different textures – velvets, drill cottons, silks, bull cottons, acetates – all demonstrating unique appearance when reflected on the runway in harmony with our color palette.

SS: Is there are any difficulties on the way to your dream?

CN: The dream for us has yet to be achieved. We have not even started the process and yet problems arise and get fixed on a daily basis. Along the 3-year long journey there were times that each of us had to carry the other on our backs because the journey is not a clear one. There is

not one distinct path to creating a successful brand. Every nanosecond of the day needs careful attention because it is very easy to lose momentum or make a decision that will hinder growth at that specific moment in time. The most challenging experience for us was not knowing anyone in the fashion industry. Our entire network has been accumulated through family/ friends as well as hundreds of emails through social media/ google search. At the time of inception, we knew no-one tied to manufacturing, content creation, marketing, showrooms, etc. We supplemented these limitations with consistent research through google/YouTube while reaching out to people who we thought - at the time – would add value to our brand. Manufacturing was another obstacle that we faced. The way we resolved this dilemma was through simple trial and error. We had taken multiple trips to Italy - all financed by ourselves – to find manufacturing facilities that match our quality standards and style. After 4 long trips back and forth from the US to Italy, we have found the correct partners that embody the same qualities we externalize.

SS: Do you have any hobby or passion other than fashion?

CN: Besides from fashion, our passions include but are not limited to cars, travel, watches, food, beautiful women, music, art, and manifesting different cultures from all over the world to form more special personalities.

SS: What are your plans for the near future?

CN: We currently finished LAFW and look to expand our distribution network/marketing throughout the world. The feedback from LAFW was extremely positive and increased our exposure coast to coast.

SS: How do you see yourself in 10-20 years?

CN: We see ourselves becoming global fashion icons with international scope. We also do understand that to achieve this is close to impossible but with the proper team and constant determination all things can be realized.

SS: Who is your role model? Why?

CN: Our families are our biggest role models/supporters, and nothing would be possible without their constant instilling of discipline and industrious behavior. They are our role models because they came as immigrants from Italy to a foreign culture with no help/resources. With constant persistence they were able to raise a family and provide all the necessary opportunities for success, and that is why we are not taking this opportunity for granted.

SS: What do you do in your free time?

CN: Our spare time consists of more work related to the brand. Wether we are at the gym or the mall – we find ourselves constantly discussing topics that need attention or spending time researching the latest updates from fashion/ events/ trends, etc. Naturally, it does not feel like work but rather something we always want to discuss frequently due to the genuine passion. We save the difficult conversations for the “9-5PM” hours if we can and have the lighter dialogue for the simple enjoyment, we get from it. Besides that, we genuinely love to cook and prepare meals for family/ friends, the occasional workout and just being around people we care about.

SS: Say a few words for our readers and those who are just starting their way to the dream.

CN: To the readers out there – constant splashing of water has the force to cut through rock – emphasizing that there is no substitute for perpetual hard work. Compounded work is what makes the dream possible. From your vision, create a viable business model to form the pillars in which you identify strongly with – because only when you identify strongly with something can you manage to find the courage to push through the struggles. Nothing motivates like passion.