Let’s go on a trip to the most beautiful country of the world: Italy through the inspiring words of Katherine Krajcarz-Kuc!
“Carlo Felice is a luxury fashion brand that designs and manufactures garments for modern women. Our products are handmade in Italy and our fabrics are exclusively hand-picked and produced with care and affection. Many of our pieces are unique and of limited quantity and we pride ourselves to live and work by the three fundamental values: quality, transparency and responsibility. Our mission is to offer modern women the right clothes so they can feel more confident, beautiful and empowered.
We promote the concept of instilling self-confidence, inner strength and happiness by choosing the right clothes to wear. That is why our focus on delivering ultimate quality and creating with passion and purpose has never been more important.
We chose the name of Carlo Felice after the king of Sardinia, Charle Felix, or Carlo Felice, as well as the connotation with the word ‘felice’ which whe ntranslated from Italian means ‘happy’. Sardinia is our place of happiness, a real Mediterranean gem that serves as a hideaway, safe harbor and a place where we feel at home and reconnect to the source. We want this feeling of luxury, freedom and happiness to be translatedinto our clothes so we can share it with the world.
CarloFelice also stands for creating with purpose and we believe that all theclothes women wear should make them feel significant, comfortable, confident, beautiful, special, and ultimately- happy.
‘’Io sono CarloFelice. I am Carlo Felice.’’
Carlo Felice woman remains unconventional regardless of the ever changing fashion and social trends; she surpasses time by living in the moment and that is how she createsa sturdy world of tomorrow.’’
We strongly believe in the power and the energy behind the “I am’’ statement; ‘’Iam’’ conveys the most powerful message to the world demonstrating each andevery one’s uniqueness. Our goal is to help women build self-confidence and self- awareness of one’s real purpose and creating an audience of same-minded Carlo Felice women- that would be the greatest reward to us.
Above all, Carlo Felice is not just fashion, it’s a timeless lifestyle choice.”
What’s the concept of your latest collection? Natural. Timeless. Carlo Felice. The inspiration behind this collection comes from the feeling of freedom, confidence and connection to nature. Our pieces represent timeless elegance and they remain relevant regardless of ever changing fashion and social trends. Handcrafted with love and affection our garments stand the test of time and superior standards. Carlo Felice is devoted to using only premium quality fabrics such as silk, wool, cotton and leather, and believe that our clothes are designed to make modern women feel confident, elegant and empowered. To us luxury should be simple, comfortable and allow us to indulge into passion and desire.
What inspires you the most? Nature, people, the universe, but most of all women.Women who are independent, ambitious and powerful; women who never give up on their dreams and push forward despite a myriad of obstacles; women who fall thousand times yet they get up thousand and one; women who are not afraid totake the path less traveled because they know that’s the path that takes them to the top; women who take responsibility of their lives and their happiness and that’s how they serve as an example to others; women who understand that strength comes from being at the bottom and the only way up comes from within;women who take risks because they understand the risk -reward ratio; women with passion of being the best version of themselves and their path of self-improvement and personal development.
How does the place you live in affect your design? Since my early childhood days I have always felt deepconnection to nature and simplicity. With both my parents being tailors by profession I was lucky to have the luxury of them making the clothes exactlythe way that I wanted them to be- unique. I have always sought to stand out bywearing clothes that no one else would have, yet they would be simple, elegant and purposeful.
I have also spent most of my childhood and adolescencein Vienna, Austria, where year on year I saw my parent’s clients bring thesame, yet expensive, designer or tailor-made clothes for further alteration sand that made me realize that clothes really shape our character and personality, they act as a medium by which we communicate with the world. I learned that having few but quality pieces in your wardrobe will get you go along way, and that is the real style and timeless elegance. Quality allows fashion to transcend and outlive the ever changing trends.
Later I traveled to Italy and the Mediterranean whereI fell in love with the place’s simplicity and its pure and wild form. That, alongside over a decade spent in a corporate financial world working in London, inspired me to start a company that allows women professionals stay elegant,yet comfortable, and go after their dreams because they can feel confident and powerful by choosing to wear the right clothes.
What’s the future of fashion according to you?Fashion has always been closely linked to the mindsetof the relevant generation where clothes, rather than being necessity, becamean expression of oneself; clothes carry psychological ramification and they shift the perception of the self and possess apowerful cultural significance.
With Millennials taking over the baton, we can alreadyobserve the shift in trends and how fashion is perceived by the current generation: fashion calendars have been tossed out, designers show their clothes between seasons in intimate settings, social platforms have gained significant influence over buyers taste; We see the general need for speed and ease of buying, and modern consumers who now choose brands that focus on social responsibility, cross-generational relevance, authenticity and purpose.
‘’The best prophet of the future is the past.’’ Fashion is in a way going back to the traditional waysof dressmaking, where quality, practicality, wearability and comfort are at theforefront again. The shopping trends are changing too, more and more clients shop online, as it’s more quick and easy and also very convenient. It also allows time to explore the trends and search for brands with values and purpose.
Since societies become more and more affluent, we also see the growing need for personal sophistication; consumers seek a betterself-expression through unique pieces that encompass quality and bespoke and personalised designs, therefore choose clothes that serve an extension of theirpersonality.
Fashion has already become a culture of its own where a modern and demanding consumer looks at everything around the clothes, it’s the entire universe of the brand, it’s the world the brands have created. Consumers no longer follow codes and they are free from traditional rules,refusing to conform to the demands of the industry. New fresh rules are created challenging convention and winning. Also luxury and designer clothes become accessible to everyone, whilst the old class hierarchies are broken down. The future of fashion lies in freedom of expression, going back to the ’self’ and focus on the quality and generational relevance. The future of fashion belongs to those who lead rather than those who follow, and that relates to both designers and consumers.
We can also already see the rise of the dominance ofsocial platforms; brands are working with influencers in order to boostengagement with the consumer. Consumers, on the other hand, seek social mediaapproval before making the purchase. Modern buyers are conscious buyers, theydo their research and they choose brands that have a story to tell, brands thatare on a mission to encourage the reduction of exploitative labour, decreasepollution and waste and focus on creating with a purpose.
Both the brands and consumer focus on sustainability and transparency where environmental awareness plays a significant role when choosing the right clothes.
What’s your next project?Our inspiration behind the next collection lies in theworks of an Italian painter- Sandro Botticelli and the artist’s representation of women in his paintings: beautiful and ambitious, caring and feminine yetstrong and powerful. We are currently working on preparing a collection of silkdresses and gowns that will aim to instil confidence and elegance into everyday wardrobe choices.
We are also looking forward to continuing our cooperation with an excellent photographer, creative director and journalist Carla Cuenca Cortés who has impeccably captured and conveyed the beauty and elegance of our recent collection in the latest shoot that took place in Barcelona, Spain. Carla understands the character and personality of the brand very deeply, she challenges us to go beyond the common concepts, and we also shares same values and passion for art and design. Above all working with her is real pleasure and a great learning curve at the same time.
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