You never know when that celebrity that you spot at a trendy restaurant and attempt to snap a picture of will become one of your clients.
Just ask designer, Marcell Pustul the creator of Marcell Von Berlin, the street-meets-couture brand for men and women that has been worn by members of Hollywood’s finest: Alessandra Ambrosio, Zedd, Ciara, Rihanna, and most recently, Jennifer Lopez…a week after Pustul tried to get a picture of her.
“I was nearly thrown out from the restaurant because I took her pictures, and then one week later when I had just come back to Europe, my friend sent me a picture of her and said, ‘look Jennifer Lopez is wearing your hoodie at the gym!” Pustul told Krischic Media.
The allure LA’s elite has with Pustul’s creations are evident upon first look at them in his store on Melrose Ave: from the swimsuits, dresses and trench coats that feature risqué prints that he hand-painted and made into his own signature pattern to his edgy couture line.
“I put the quality of my couture into the ready-to-wear, so still it’s very easy and casual but with high-end quality of the fabrics, and finishing and that’s why we named it ‘street couture,’” Pustul told Krischic Media. “You’ll find cool, shiny short dresses that you can wear with sneakers, but you can also wear with the high heels at night.”
The designer launched his brand in 2012 after working for modern luxury brands like Donna Karen and Michael Kors. While his brand has had a home in Berlin and Frankfurt, he decided to bring a store to Los Angeles, Berlin’s sister city, he told Krischic Media.
“I really like the vibe of the people [in LA]. When they’re looking through a store, buying something or want to just have an ice cream, the people talk to you like, ‘oh my God, you look so good. I love your shoes.’ And this brings me so much good energy for doing what I do,” he told Krischic Media.
Before moving to New York to study fashion design at Parsons School of Design, Pustul grew up in Poland with a seamstress grandmother and a mother with eight sisters. In this sort of environment an affinity for fashion and design emerged.
I was so obsessed with what they were wearing and everything, so that’s a big part of why I’m a fashion designer,” Pustul told Krischic Media. “We have this thing called ‘Poland Sundays.’ It’s when you dress up and go you enjoy the day when you are free. You see it through the clothing, and the girls wear makeup.”
Pustul brings his Polish roots into Marcell Von Berlin in more ways than one: his headquarters and ateliers may be stationed in Berlin, but he explained that the brand is a mixture of his life experiences growing up in Poland (plus some production takes place in Poland), living in Berlin, New York, LA, and drawing from his Italian roots.
“I think because I’m half Italian, I have this quality for the design. But I will say, I’m more Cosmopolitan. Every piece of the world, every corner of this beautiful world inspires me,” he told Krischic Media.
One of those ‘corners’ happened to be a private beach in Malibu. His most popular print (especially among LA customers), an abstract female that adorns trench coats and swimsuits alike, was inspired by an anonymous woman on a private beach.
“She was laying and enjoying the sun, and I thought, ‘oh my God, this is what I want to put on the clothes,”’ Pustul told Krischic Media. “I really respect women, and I design for women, so I want women to feel amazing in my dresses. So, I put more of this girl on all the clothes, and it’s amazing. We thought it would be successful, but not as successful at is.”
So successful in fact, that the Spring/Summer 2020 collection, which is currently in production, will feature this woman alongside Asian motifs.
“We’ll mix it with Japanese writings and more Mandarin, Oriental prints on it. So, tigers and Japanese signs,” Pustul told Krischic Media.
Besides the new collection customers can look forward to an innovative shopping experience that features a custom unique to the Berlin lifestyle: Späti. Spätis are 24-hour convenience stores, treasure troves of German candies, beer, basically the satisfaction any craving someone could have in the middle of the night. Customers enter through a Späti at every Marcell Von Berlin store, starting off with a sweet feast before feasting their eyes on the garments the luxury brand has to offer.
“I want the people who come into our stores to get a new experience while shopping: to grab a beer while looking for nice high-end luxury clothes. I want to break this luxury level with the streetwear,” Pustul told Krischic Media.
The brand also plans to host a yearly summer fashion show in Los Angeles. Customers can browse past current collections on the Marcell Von Berlin website.
Keeping it Krischic,
Kristin Vartan
Keeping it Krischic,
Kristin Vartan
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