Fashion Your Seatbelt: Julie de Libran

It is always extremely gratifying when someone in fashion who has paid their dues and learned the trade alongside the best finally gets their moment in the spotlight. That is how the fashion industry felt when Sonia Rykiel named Julie de Libran as its creative director in 2014.

Julie worked with the likes of Marc Jacobs, Miuccia Prada, Gianni Versace and Gianfranco Ferre during her career. And since she arrived at Rykiel she has been very successful at offering up collections that are positive and female empowering – in keeping with the DNA of the house. Giving the clothing a modern slant but with always a nod to the 1970s when the founder of the house was at her peak of creativity. That was also when Julie’s mom was wearing Rykiel…pieces that the designer later “borrowed” for months at a time.

De Libran tends to create more lifestyle pieces and mix the masculine and feminine together in a supple and subtle way. Nothing is overly overstated and yet almost all of her designs somehow end up looking like great statement pieces.

And as glamorous as she might look, she actually tends to be rather shy. She is also a faithful friend and dedicated mother and wife. While at the same time she is running one of the most iconic French brands in the world.

I spoke with the designer in her office, which is stacked to the roof top with books, as her design team worked diligently behind a sliding door and her assistant – a childhood friend of over 20 years quietly answering emails quietly in a corner…we chatted about the Sonia Rykiel legacy, a childhood split between France and California and how she envisions the Rykiel woman of today.

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Jessica Michault

Jessica Michault is the Senior Vice President of industry relations at GPS Radar by Launchmetrics. She is also the editor-at-large for ODDA magazine and contributes to publications like the New York Times, the Business of Fashion, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Mixte magazine.