[ad_1]
On a Sunday afternoon at MKT Mall in Houston Heights, Chloe Dao’s boutique is bustling with shoppers, many of whom are trying their best to make a regular run around one of the city’s most popular fashion designers. Dao is the only one working in her shop on this busy day, but she shows no signs of stress. She greets customers, asks if there are color requirements for sorority rush dresses, jokes about the latest Real Housewives Drama, places name tags on shopping bags. When you hear that a customer is struggling to get dressed, say, “Do you need help? These ties can be difficult. The young woman who was probably in elementary school compared to Dao Project runwayA reality series in which designers compete for a chance to show collections at New York Fashion Week – Dao hesitates as she walks away from the front desk of her store. Dao is Tex casual, in skinny jeans, an airy top with black stitching, and strappy heels. Her tail wags with authority as she walks into the dressing room and within seconds the client’s frustration is replaced by calm. It’s no surprise that Dao won the second season. Project runway Sixteen years ago. She is good at making it work.
Dao made a name for herself in the fashion industry when she appeared on Bravo. She works with brands such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Carolina Herrera and Marc Jacobs, selling special orders. Her fashion line, Simply Chloe, was featured frequently on QVC and her Houston boutique, Lot 8, was open for four years. Later project runway, The opportunities became greater. “I did a collaboration with Dove deodorant, I showed [a collection] At the Smithsonian Museum, I was the keynote speaker for the Girl Scouts centennial celebration, she recalled over the phone.
“I still think we should have won that underwear challenge,” Dao says, referring to the game’s bitterness. Project runway A team competition where her designs did not agree with the judges. I think of the black lace underwear in that test and I think of how many similar looks she has successfully prepared and sold here in Houston. In addition to its e-commerce site and flagship store in Rice Village, Dao opened a second outlet in early 2021 in MKT, a trendy mixed-use mall. And she did all this from the city of Houston, which is more famous for the medical and petroleum industries than for the fashion scene. Despite the opportunities flowing in New York, where the fashion district devotes all its energy and resources (incl Project runway Fan-favorite shop Emotion Fabrics) necessary for a successful business, Dao decided to return home.
“I’ve covered fashion in Houston for twenty years and I’ve interviewed a lot of designers here,” says Joy Swing, a former fashion editor and longtime friend of Dao’s. “Most of them went out of business and moved on to other things or moved to another city. [Dao] He is one of the few who have stayed here and made a successful career here.
Dao was born in Laos when she was eight years old when her family – including eight daughters – in their respective age groups – came to the United States, first arriving in Dallas, then settling north of Houston. Coming of age in the eighties and nineties, Dao was an excellent student at Aldine Middle School and Aldine High, and thrived in their various environments. “Everyone was smart and talented and famous and there were so many different races,” she said. “I was good at school and had to do cheerleading. It was like a utopia.
Her mother planted the first Dao genius seeds in the fashion business. “She’s a kickass girl,” Dao said. “She came to the United States without English and had three jobs—one was sewing for Macy’s and Nordstrom—then [worked] As a dynamic woman in a men’s tailoring shop. Dao hilariously disappears before adding, with impeccable comedic timing, “Then she goes to KFC to make fried chicken. Eventually, Dao’s mother began making clothes for sale at flea markets with eight little helpers on weekends.
Over time, Dao developed her own style. “He draws lines and curves into the clean in nature, architecture and product designs,” she says. “I am inspired by the great Balenciaga, Givenchy, Vionnet, Geoffrey Beene and great American costume designers like Edith Hess.” Growing up with seven sisters shaped her inner awareness of body diversity. Today, that realization has inspired her to offer sample sizes for all body types. “A lot of the gowns I’m working on in this collection are sample sizes 12, 14 and 16, where a real woman can come in and try them on. Because real women aren’t just size 0s and 2s.
Dao looks back fondly on her days in New York, but remembers seeing how demanding the fashion industry can be. She remembers working for a boss in New York who seemed successful but bitter and lonely. “I didn’t want this life,” Dao said. “My goal in moving back to Houston was to be closer to my family and live a life of fashion, friends and family. fNot just one.”
In the year In 2000, Dao returned to Houston and immediately created a life of three priorities. “Even though I’m always making porridge, I try to go to my mother’s house to sleep or relax, enjoy my family, spend time with my husband and friends.” Moving to Houston helped her find a difficult work-life balance, but also made her dream financially possible. At first she lived at home with her parents and they drove their car to save money. “I don’t come from money,” Dao explains. “[I] Family support and financial support are needed to open a boutique.
Today, Dao’s MKT boutique showcases everything she has built over the past two decades. The attractiveness that the store offers is a physical expression; There’s a table of geometric earrings, delicate necklaces and statement rings. A row of hot pink and parrot-green dresses and pants with tops printed with flowers and fireflies. All around, you’ll find carefully crafted dresses for any occasion. The Dao Design Studio is visible from all areas of the boutique, welcoming customers to view alterations, view moodboards, and observe the design process. She was inspired by the popular “open kitchen” concept of her time Project runway Running “food became a whole thing, chefs became rock stars, because you could see the process and why it takes so much to make certain dishes,” Dao explained. “I think you appreciate things more if you see how they’re made. I personally like to see anything done. I love the process and creation of anything.
Dao values the journey as much as the destination because on any given day, a fashion designer, a businesswoman, and everyone in between. “I talk to my staff, sell to customers, come up with custom designs, strategize about the business, then do some cleaning and organizing between the design studio, the Rice Village store or the MKT area,” she says. “So I’m like a cleaning lady and CEO.” Natalie Besnard is Chloe Dao’s store manager and has known Dao since 1999, when they both started in retail. She thinks Dao’s personality is the key to his lasting success. “Being with Chloe is like being with a best, funniest, most creative friend. She makes you feel very welcome.
No matter how much love he has for H, it’s very easy to be in the business of selling clothes in a city like New York. “I wish I could just go down the street and find the fabric or trim I need, the culture of fashion,” Dao said. “I just miss being out in Manhattan. I miss the ecosystem of the fashion district. Ultimately, though, she’s at peace with her decision to design and run her business in Houston, especially since she’s seen the city invest in its arts and culture scene. “I think we’ll try. There are more fashion boutiques now and more support for local designers,” she says. “Like, there’s a shop near MKT called Pop Up Collaborative. They’re local designers and artists, women-owned.”
In the year In 2006, when Tim Gunn visited Dao before her show at Bryant Park, he was puzzled by the lack of pictures or an announced set theme. Undeterred, Dao says, “I’m a designer who doesn’t think about a theme. I like to think about my customers and what they want this season. Dao is as attuned to the changing needs of her customers today as she was on the show sixteen years ago.
[ad_2]
Source link
