Hazel Aggrey-Orleans, The Quintessential ‘Eki Girl’

Hazel Aggrey-Orleans is the founder and creative director of the London-based fashion house ‘Eki Orleans’. Her creative skills and business mindset are self-taught, but the boldness of her love for fashion, which dared her to leave the comfort of her career in the corporate world to start her own business, is something she has always naturally had in her possession. Yaaya had the honour of meeting with Hazel, the quintessential ‘Eki Girl’, where we explored some of the defining moments of her personal life and career journey to-date.

In Part 1 of this four-part interview, Yaaya invites you to understand the birth of Eki Orleans and how Hazel navigated into the world of fashion.

And so the conversation begins …

Meeting Yaaya

 

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Yaaya:

Hi Hazel, it’s very nice to meet you. So, like we said before, our approach at Yaaya is about creating dialogue and encouraging people to join our conversations. So we’re very interested hearing why you decided to join “this” conversation?

Hazel A:

Well when I got the invitation, I took a look at the blog, as I’d never heard of it, and I thought it was quite an interesting concept. And so I thought, there was no harm in speaking and just … seeing if there was anything I could do to help and work with you.

Eki Orleans

 

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Yaaya:

You are the creative force behind the London-based fashion label ‘Eki Orleans’ -

Hazel A:

Oh wow you pronounced the name well, because some people aren’t sure how to say it: “Is it eee-kay-eye or it is eee-kee?” But it’s "eh-kee". So, yes … you got it spot on! (Laughs)

Yaaya:

What is the story behind the name ‘Eki Orleans’?

Hazel A:

Well it started off with ‘Orleans Designs’ and I had a consultant brand manager who said “that name doesn’t represent what the clothes are like.” So we decided to change it into something else. We looked around and asked ourselves “what could we call it?”

‘Eki’ is actually my middle name and it means ‘centre of attraction’. And so it was quite a fresh and short name, and quite sassy and quite innovative. So it’s like, when you wear on one of the dresses you become the ‘centre of attraction’. Therefore, the name fitted well, there was a story behind it, and also it was concise … it was young, whereas “Orleans Designs” was a bit frumpy and old.

And it really makes a difference what kind of name you have, because, even if you don’t know the brand, if you see the name and it sounds interesting you will tap [into] it. If it doesn’t [sound interesting], then you won’t. So ‘Eki’ just fits in more with the brand, and that’s why we changed it.

Yaaya:

And ‘Orleans’ comes from your surname?

Hazel A:

Yes, Orleans comes from there [my surname].

Yaaya:

When did ‘Eki Orleans’ start?

Hazel A:

Eki Orleans started … I will say late 2009. I was doing scarves before, but I wouldn’t say I was really pushing it. So mid-2009 I thought to myself, “Okay, I really need to take this to a different level” and do something that is a bit more unique to myself rather than using certain textiles that were out there already. So then I was asking myself “why don’t we design our own prints?” Then the thinking evolved into “why don’t we design our own silk?”, because it’s not really something that has been done, because it’s usually cotton that’s experimented with like that. So yeah, I’d say late 2009 was when I brought out my first collection.

Yaaya:

You say that the label wasn’t quite where you thought it would be in mid-2009, but your scarves were being stocked on shelves in Selfridges, no?

Hazel A:

The scarves were sort of just still being publicised through word of mouth. And the scarves I started off with were very different from the scarves I do now. Before, I used Kente fabric and mixed it with Indian silk. It was nice, but I didn’t really feel like it really [represented me] … I wanted something that was a part of me. So now, I kind of tell my story on the prints. And you can’t just go out and buy the fabric, it’s very unique to Eki Orleans.

Yaaya:

And so you don’t use Kente fabric anymore at all?

Hazel A:

No not really, just because of the way my dresses are. They are quite “flowy” and so it wouldn’t fit in the style because Kente fabric is more stiff.

Yaaya:

How did ‘Eki Orleans’ start?

Hazel A:

Hmm … how did it start? (Reflective pause) Okay, I guess I will take it back to ‘Orleans Designs’. It was when I was working in banking and I was pregnant with my first child, and I just realised that I needed to do something that I was passionate about. It’s not that I always knew I wanted to be a fashion designer, I didn’t know that. But I knew that I loved colour, I loved culture … and so I was trying to find something that had could translate colour and culture into art. And for me, I wasn’t going to be an artist, so that was out of the question. So then it just became “okay, art is fashion” – so I guess drawing on the prints was something that came close to what I wanted to do, and it just became a translation of my culture.

I guess I am quite creative, which I didn’t know before. When I was working in banking, my creative side never came out. So yeah, it was just something I dug out and brought out. So yeah, that’s how it started. I was doing that on the side while working in banking.

Yaaya:

Your journey into fashion doesn’t appear to be the conventional one. For example, you studied European and Hispanic studies, not Fashion Design. Additionally, you had a career in European Marketing within finance for ten years. What prompted you to leave Finance for a career in fashion?

Hazel A:

I always knew that I didn’t want to be in finance forever. But I think [something changed] when was when I pregnant. Okay, I think your hormones go a bit crazy when you’re pregnant (laughs), so your ideas, outlook … everything [changes]. And so it was like, I knew I wouldn’t be happy doing a 9-to-5 and having a child being looked after by somebody else. I wanted to be close to them and do something that they would be proud of. Because I thought after my banking role, “what else could they be proud of mommy about?” So this [Eki Orleans] was something that I could maybe give to my daughter and something she could get involved in. I think it was really when I became pregnant that I got the courage to do something different.

Yaaya:

So, was it that you were always interested in fashion, or was it family that was the dominant factor to encourage you to try something new?

Hazel A:

I don’t know if it is an African thing, but it’s very much like you look for jobs that will give you money and that will pay a good salary. You don’t think fashion or art or these unconventional jobs will pay. It’s only later on in life that you realise that actually you can make a living – it maybe it takes longer [to have something that is stable and successful] but you can.

And I think when you’re older, life becomes too short to do something you’re not passionate about because you can’t give it your all. For example, this [Eki Orleans] to me doesn’t feel like work. I wake up in the morning and I just can’t wait to switch my phone on and check my e-mails. That was not the case with banking (laughs). So yes, when you’re just so passionate about something, you will succeed, whereas if it [passion] is not quite there, you’ll always be … sort of in the middle.

Yaaya:

Do you feel your journey demonstrates that a formal education in fashion design or textiles is not necessarily required for a successful career in the fashion industry?

Hazel A:

I wouldn’t say you don’t need that [a fashion/textiles degree], I think it is good to have. But then I guess from my perspective, I am not rigidly set in the way of the rules you learn in fashion. I just come with a blank canvas, and I like this. I don’t have rules or tell myself “you can’t do this because this is not how it should be put together”. That is I guess an advantage.

Also, I guess when you’re “too creative” you can get lost in the creativity. Rather, I come from more of a business background. So it’s like “okay, I am making these garments and they need to be sold”. So we construct them in a way that can be easily manufactured and sold, or the prints are commercial so that they can be sold. Rather than creating this spectacular piece on the runway which cannot be sold. But then it also good to have the training you get from a fashion degree. But I would say, if you’re very creative, have a business person with you.

You can do it without training, but I wouldn’t shove it to the side and assume you don’t need to do fashion training. But if you have an eye for it, then you can work things out. So yes, it is possible.

The Transition and the Challenges

 

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Yaaya:

Change is naturally a scary process as familiarity is a great comfort blanket. Did you find the transition to being self-employed difficult?

Hazel A:

It was hard. I worked on the label in the evenings. So I would be doing financial marketing during the day and then in the evenings, I would come home and be a fashion designer. So it was hard to put on those two different hats. But I think it was when my contract came to an end that I could fully commit to the label. This was in 2011.

I don’t know if would have had the courage, probably a bit later, to leave my paid banking job to focus on the label. It takes a lot of courage, that’s why I would always say keep a steady income while you are building your brand. Don’t necessarily leave that and go into something new. So by that time [when I left] I would have saved enough. Because with fashion, you have to have a quite a bit of money to produce collections. For instance, with me, I was printing the fabrics and designing the dresses. Also when you release your first collection, buyers don’t buy it immediately. That’s something you probably learn in fashion school. Because you think “oh, I’ll bring out a nice collection and [people will buy it]”. But no!

I’ve learned so much from when I first started. My collections are so different to what they are now; they are more cohesive, they tell a story. Initially, when I came out, they were just individual dresses, they didn’t really come together. But that’s something you would learn at fashion school, which I didn’t.

Yaaya:

What are some of the challenges you faced?

Hazel A:

Regarding challenges, you make a lot of business mistakes. I’ve made a lot of financial mistakes as well. Challenges … (pauses to think), I guess for me it was also the pressure of coming out with a collection that had to surpass the last collection. But you can’t always surpass your last collection. It was a learning curve, but now it’s okay. I bring out collections and some are stronger, for me, than others, and you just have to accept that.

And people will criticise you anyway, so you just have to accept that [also]. Coming up with an idea that is always interesting and coming up with prints that people would like is a challenge as well. I don’t know if people will like my designs, I just design what I like. If they like it, they like it … if they don’t, they don’t.

Yaaya:

That’s a good attitude to have, because you can’t please everyone. More importantly, you don’t want to lose sight of who are in the process of trying to make everyone happy.

Hazel A:

Yes, if you try to please too many people your brand is going to dissolve, because it will be all over the place. You have to kind of just stick to what the brand is about. Going back to your previous question, I guess also when you’re working with suppliers [there are also challenges]. Initially, they way I liked to work with suppliers was to treat them like friends. But I’ve learned as well that you can’t necessarily do that because it’s a business. And when it comes to money, things change.

Yaaya:

When negotiating with suppliers or external vendors, are any of your challenges due to maybe because you’re a woman, you might not be taken seriously?

Hazel A:

You get that sometimes. But all my suppliers now are actually women. So I’m really happy with the supply chain, like I have one here [U.K.] and one in China. I worked with a production company here who was a man, and I guess there was no respect whatsoever for me. I don’t know [specifically] if it was because I was a woman or black, but the business relationship had to be cut off and I lost money through that as well. But I guess that’s just the process of this business – you will lose money, but the important lesson is to learn from your mistakes.

Yaaya:

What about the challenges of being a mother and running your own business as well?

Hazel A:

I don’t really see it so much as a challenge. I think if I didn’t have my kids, I don’t think I would have pushed the business [forward] as much. They are my drive. Yes, it’s hard with them, and when I started out I would take them in their prams to the factory. I mean they were involved in everything. We travelled all over the U.K., we travelled to India … all over the world. To me, they are a part of my business. And that’s why I don’t see them as a challenge, I think if I didn’t have them, I wouldn’t push myself as much as I do now, because I want them to be proud of me.

Look out for Part 2 of this four-part post on Wednesday 24th July, where Yaaya discusses with Hazel her African and European identity.

Leave your comments below to let us know what you have found inspiring about Hazel’s journey. Invite others to the conversation by sharing this post!

Image Source | These images do not belong to Yaaya. Images courtesy of Hazel Aggrey-Orleans (Eki Orleans)