Who you are: Saukok Chu Tiampo and Carmen Ho
Location: New York City’s garment district
Company: 57Grand Bridesmaids
What do you do? We design bridesmaid dresses and accessories with a modern look and an eye to rewear-ability. Our brides buy our dresses to wear to cocktails, their reception and their rehearsal dinner too!
What is your aesthetic? Modern with a touch of runway, featuring subtle, often architectural details that result in a timeless aesthetic.
How does your studio style convey your professional aesthetic? Our walls are a soft grey, with brushed steel fixtures and white lacquer / neutral furnishings. We wanted our studio and showroom style to speak to our collection’s modern, architectural look, and also to accentuate our dresses’ color palette.
Favorite part of your studio? Our snack box! And our Pandora music station. We’re busy bees here, but that’s not to say that the tunes aren’t going, and we aren’t hitting the snack box for tasty treats mid day…
Where do you go for inspiration? Inspiration can strike anywhere. We can be inspired by buildings in New York City, like the way a set of pipes run over a building, or by the shoulder of an ancient piece of armor at the Met museum. Travel is important for both of us too, to reset and find fresh inspiration. Some destinations we have on deck include Italy, Vietnam, and Japan.
What tool do you use in your business that you can’t live without? All of our incredible partners here in the garment district. We work with extremely talented folks every step of the way, from making the sample line during our inspiration stage, to manufacturing the collection. It’s still amazing to us that here in New York City, we can pop just a block or two into a neighboring skyscraper to work with our sewing factories!
Is there anything you’d upgrade to? A teleporter. To India for an inspiration trip, please.
Anything else we should know? Our collection will be featured at select Bella Bridesmaid stores this Fall. We’re excited to start our first retail collaboration. Stay tuned for more news!
[images from 57grand]