Today we’d like to introduce you to Doni Nahmias.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m 27 years young, grew up in a small beach surf/skate town Santa Barbara, CA. I founded the label NAHMIAS in 2018 with an in store launch and installation at H Lorenzo.
I’ve been fascinated with fashion and design since I was a kid. I would walk through luxury department stores and just be transfixed by the clothing, the accessories, the aesthetics, but at that point in my life, I couldn’t buy anything. I remember the first time I walked into Barney’s I instantly fell in love with that world of fashion and I knew this is what I wanted to do.
I moved to LA to pursue fashion. I shared a one-bedroom apartment with two other friends. I was working three jobs, serving/ bartending at four seasons in Beverly Hills, Chateau Marmont, and traveling back home on the weekends to work at Esau’s cafe. Every dollar I made I was investing into learning the fashion industry. Buying fabrics, paying to develop patterns and samples and just trying to figure everything out.
I was then lucky enough to have a mentor now, Mike Amiri. Brought me on as an intern for a season. I shadowed him and soaked in all the knowledge I could and was able to see how a successful company was run… From there, I then launched my first collection with NAHMIAS.
I had my first drop at H lorenzo on sunset in Los Angeles, and I quite all my jobs the next day/ (not the best idea) but somehow, to this day, it has always worked out and have always found a way.
My past is a huge part of my process. I draw a lot on my life experiences and the communities I came from when I’m designing. Growing up in Santa Barbara, I would play a lot of basketball, surf, and skateboard. SB is a unique melting pot in that you get an interesting mix of all those cultures and I blend that into my designs today.
Has it been a smooth road?
Definitely not a smooth road – There were countless times of feeling defeat and the verge of giving up.
The first couple of years I was living in LA, my bank account would be negative every other day. Trying to find the balance between all my jobs and trying to build a brand with the little time I had left was very draining.
There were times of defeat where I have had big meetings to get into a dream store and I would be shut down. Told that I was not ready yet or was not good enough.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with NAHMIAS – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
As a designer, I take a lot of the inspiration for the collections from my upbringing and what I was culturally inspired by. I would take these ideas of what I love from my past and rework them into a new language of luxury. I love taking something and putting it into a new element and give it a new light. For instance, on our last collection “Above the Waters” I took inspiration from the film starring Tupac Shakur “Above the Rim”. I would take visual references and style from the film and recreate it using silks and some of the best materials I could get my hands on. I then took the collection and shot it on the beach in Summerland in a new environment, I find the juxtaposition to be captivating and powerful.
For the new AW20 Collection titled SUMMERLAND STATE- We re-worked old Rugby football shirt styles, khaki trousers, gym sweat suits, and loungewear; basically taking silhouettes you might see on a campus back in the mid-20th century but brought the fabrics and design aesthetic into a modern feel. We created this visual symbol of vintage sportswear, but it’s taken out of its element and showcased in a new light, in a new environment again.
All of our silks are put through a special sand wash treatment to give it kind of a vintage look and feel. I like to consider the ocean from my youth takes a small piece into that process.
As a company, we are very proud that we are now carried in some of considered to be the best boutiques in the world. Including Maxfield LA, Browns, Harrods, Hirshleifers, and SSENSE.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Los Angeles is the city of dreams. The power of networking it has is special. You literally can make your dreams come true here. Anything is possible and you have access to just about everything at your fingertips.
Dislike// the traffic.
Contact Info:
- Website: WWW.NAHMIAS.CO
- Email: INFO@NAHMIAS.CO
- Instagram: @DONI.NAHMIAS///////@NAHMIAS__
Image Credit:
Brendan Wixted, Matthew Kavanagh
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