Voyeurvoyeur: Kat Qiu’s Vision For Fashion Retail In East London

The task is entirely self-funded, and Qiu says she does not foresee a future where she ‘d compromise the merchant’s independence for the sake of external funding. She currently has a group of 5, consisting of an innovative director and a commercial director, enabling her to have a sounding board on each side of the job.

The store will stock Rick Owens, Ann Demeulemeester, Helmut Lang, Dries Van Noten, Jean Paul Gaultier, Mugler, Coperni, Willy Chavarria, Acronym, Knwls and extra, with curation rooted in Qiu’s individual partnerships and aesthetic perspective. While a few of these brand names may stimulate a progressive, even shateringly great, photo, Qiu says the shop will be approachable– the sort of room where you hang out and find brand names since they’re resting right next to a product you would certainly currently wear.

I ‘d likewise like to stand for skills in a business-to-business capability and aid them display in Asia. I ‘d love VoyeurVoyeur to become an entity past retail that’s not simply customer based, yet also musician based, going past fashion and into art, design, insides and lifestyle.

Kat Qiu: From Muse to Shop Owner

Kat Qiu has actually been seen in black thigh-high boots with slicked-back bleached hair on Balenciaga’s Times Square billboards, on the Rick Owens footway wearing sculptural gowns and black sclera contacts, and in white and black tweed in advocate Karl Lagerfeld (for whom she was an individual muse). But the version and imaginative is tipping away from the cam for her most recent endeavor, VoyeurVoyeur, an idea shop opening in August 2025 in East London.

Fashion It-girl Kat Qiu is releasing a multi-brand store in Shoreditch in August, stocking Rick Owens, Ann Demeulemeester and a lot more. We speak to her regarding browsing the launch within a difficult retail market.

When you put those names with each other, people visualize a white and extremely black progressive store with very alienesque products. You’ll also locate sexy brands like Mugler and Jean Paul Gaultier that truly occupy the body, and technological brand names like Acronym.

Component of the factor why I’m establishing up a shop is because you don’t actually obtain innovative control when you’re a model. My previous experiences have actually formed every little thing I like, the brands I attach with and the curation I such as to see, the hassles I find as a customer and even size and fit as a version, when everybody’s pinching you and clipping things onto you. When you place those names together, people imagine a extremely black and white progressive shop with very alienesque items. You’ll also find sexy brand names like Mugler and Jean Paul Gaultier that actually inhabit the body, and technical brand names like Acronym.

Literally developing something in London is hard. Provided, the layouts are fairly ambitious, but people have actually overpromised on what’s feasible and then we’ve had to start over, so there have actually been delays in building and construction. The creative side hasn’t been a challenge at all.

A Unique Store Concept

The store is impossible to miss out on– you essentially march onto the Block Lane bus stop and it’s the first point you see, so it has to live up to the quality you would certainly anticipate. I’m collaborating with a London-based architectural firm led by Peter Cook and Gavin Robothan called Crab Workshop who are outstanding. They’ve given us some truly enthusiastic designs, it’s like absolutely nothing else in London. Without handing out too much, it’s visually intriguing and geometric without overwhelming the area; it puts a focus on the clothing without being as well very little, like if we were to do simple concrete. It’s the kind of place you walk already been available in simply to take an image, also if you’re not going to buy anything– almost like a touchable gallery. We’ll have some intriguing products inside as component of the walls, and the uniform is also going to be constructed from that very same product.

Those challenges are much more existing for a few of the larger names in the sector. The fundamental problem is there’s an excess of supply and not nearly enough demand. Running numbers at that ability is really different from what I’m attempting to do. They have certain numbers they need to satisfy and the connection with the brands is extremely driven by the stock and data, whereas, with VoyeurVoyeur, it’s a lot more deeply personal connection. If I can have a few of their path items, all of our discussions have actually started with me asking brand names. Because there’s excess supply, it actually makes whatever much more budget-friendly to us as an independent store, so it’s actually been easier to set something up in this environment because everybody’s seeking opportunities.

Building Community Through Fashion

I do not desire whatever to be lowered to micro-trends, or to what’s carrying out or flattering. I desire the client to be someone that, if you see them walking on the street, they look like the kind of individual you would certainly do a $2 million offer with but you also want to fuck them that evening. I’m not a fan of a mood board with extremely deep narration, for me it’s even more concerning something that looks amazing when you’re dancing, or when you’re tipping out of a taxi.

I would not state I’m targeting a details area or aesthetic, like streamlined or progressive or punk. With the overarching motif of body and sensuality it’s much less limiting. It’s niche and about community, however it also does not shut off anybody that isn’t component of the area– I’m not just acquiring for the 20 to 35-year-old ‘amazing’ girls, it’s somewhere hopefully my mum can come and shop. When you hear the brand names we stock you may assume they only do insane shapes, yet there are a great deal of even more tame products that are quite possibly made– no one cuts a suit like Rick [Owens] , for example. The concept isn’t to be indifferent and for individuals to assume they’re not cool down enough to go shopping right here, it has to do with being welcoming so individuals wish to try points. I’m not developing to grow demand, I’m developing to inspire.

The Personal Touch

I have actually been operating in style given that I ended up university, however much more in press, imaginative instructions and modelling. Because you do not really get imaginative control when you’re a model, component of the reason why I’m setting up a store is. My past experiences have formed whatever I like, the brands I get in touch with and the curation I like to see, the hassles I find as a consumer and also size and fit as a version, when everybody’s pinching you and clipping things onto you. I have actually likewise seen a change where people wish to shop in-person once more and desire something responsive. I intend to bring people inside the shop to touch the garments and experience just how they fit on the body. I’m coming with it from a creative viewpoint as opposed to business, so it’s much less regarding purchasing a coat I recognize I require and more concerning someplace I go to socialize and see what’s cool. I feel that’s lacking in London, there aren’t lots of locations for discovery.

The store is difficult to miss out on– you essentially step out onto the Block Lane bus stop and it’s the initial point you see, so it has to live up to the quality you ‘d anticipate.