THE FREE SPIRIT
Nick Fouquet has carved out a name for himself as a renegade. The LA-based milliner creates one-of-a kind pieces that are worn the globe over by an arm of dedicated clients who love their free-spirited aesthetic
What do your first 30 minutes of the day look like? I love my mornings, it's my time to get centred so I make sure to keep my phone on airplane mode and don't turn it on for at least the first hour of my morning. Afterward, I brush my teeth and wash my face with cold water. I make Yerba Mate tea, stretch, read, write and meditate for 20 minutes. That's my morning.
Your schedule is packed. How do you maintain a sense of balance when you’re always on-the-go?
It's important to drink a lot of water and take time for yourself when you're able to have a little off time. Surfing is something that helps me recalibrate, I try to stretch and exercise my mind and body daily so I feel sharp.
You grew up in France and New York. How do you think those two places have impacted your design aesthetic?
Living in a bi-cultural upbringing has tremendously helped my design aesthetic overall. I've been able to tap into both worlds and take what I love from each. I feel I have an advantage where my viewpoint is broader. I feel so fortunate with how I was brought up, it has been the most useful barometer for my aesthetic.
Did the path to launching Nick Fouquet feel organic and how did you know it was the right time? I never knew if it was or wasn't the right
time – I was young and naive and fearless. I saw there was a gap in the market for luxury headwear, I was passionate about the venture and honestly didn't plan enormously as I just took action. Looking back, it was the right time, a lot of hard work, and passion. That recipe is usually a sign of success.
Do you feel more drawn to the creative or the business side of the brand and how have you grown the team to support this?
I definitely think of myself more like a creative soul than a business exec. My mind looks and sees things in a different way, I love the creative process and especially the collaborative process. I have to admit that over the years the business side of the brand has been really exciting where I once saw it as something scary. The administrative component of running a business is paramount. I have had to switch my creative hat on and off for the business, no pun intended. I couldn't have imagined how much I would have enjoyed to learn about the inter-workings of my business and feel that it has given me wings to trust and then be more creative in the process by fundamentally understanding the business elements to my work. What has been the biggest hurdle since starting your own brand and how did you overcome it? The biggest hurdle for me is team manage
ment, I've realised it's not my strong suit and very happy to delegate that task to someone else on my team today. I think it's important to be aware of your strengths and weaknesses, then realise it and hand it to someone where it's their strength.
Do you have any mentors who helped guide you on your way? I have many mentors / guides in every aspect of my life, spiritually, in business, with family and at home. I am constantly in contact with them in order to help me navigate work. Running a business with several employees and overheads, is very trying on the soul. It's important to have a spiritual outlook on your business. There are constant surprises in running a business and it's important to have people to help you navigate those areas. My business has taught me more about myself than I could have ever imagined. Why do you think Nick Fouquet has amassed such a loyal following and how do you cater to ensuring there’s always something new? I think the brand has garnered a loyal following because there's a rebellious attitude to what we do. I've never really worried what people thought if I did this or that. It's all from the heart. I was always striving to bring quality and passion to my work, and people feel that. I've been excited to share my universe since I was a kid, it makes me so happy people enjoy it... and it's just the beginning!
Have you created any memorable bespoke pieces for clients? I've created a vast number of bespoke pieces for clients. Some of the most memorable ones recently include the team from Marilyn Manson asking me to create a hat for the album cover. I don't know where it came from, but it came out unique and I love those unexpected bursts of creative divine intervention from the cosmos. How do you select the materials you use and where do you source them from? I talk with my team to look at all our raw materials and ensure we get the best quality possible for everything. I source as much as I can domestically. When I build a collection I usually build a storyline on a certain geographic region. So, I will perhaps get accoutrements from Peru or Morocco based on the vibe of the collection. Have you worked with the same team who hand make your pieces from the start and how
does each design come to life? I've been fortunate enough to hold on to my same team for years, so they understand my crazy process.
The team is paramount and I'm grateful I have such an amazing team to help me bring my vision to life. The designs come to life through me and my interpretation of a collection, I'm the one that creates all the first pieces in the collection and then my team helps me replicate them. Sometimes bespoke client creations spark ideas for collections and other designs. Ultimately the clients come with great ideas and challenges which in turns helps me design. Each piece takes 22 steps to complete using special techniques to achieve the love-worn patinas that make them so unique. Tell us about the process? The process is very extensive and I laugh with people to let them know it takes 22+ steps to create a beautiful piece and in the end, we burn it down! There's something symbolic for me about this. The matchstick is your signature. Why? The matchstick is the spark of creativity. I love the symbolism of it.
What is your approach to scaling the business? For me it's to continue to make things I love in other categories, although I don't think it's wise to diversify into things you're not passionate about. We have a lot of new products coming out soon that I'm excited about. As the best brand ambassador for your own brand, what else does this entail when it comes to a demanding market? This is something that is very burdensome on the soul. The need to create content is important but is a huge challenge as there is constant need to post and share and express what we're doing. It's a phenomenal and powerful tool and I love when my followers engage and are excited. It's more work than I could have imagined. You have clients the globe over – do you see any buying patterns based on regions or countries? I don't, I think people love uniqueness and creativity, I strive to offer that.
What in this market is luxury? My friend and I say, if you can remove the logo and it's made with quality, then that's luxury.
How do you approach client engagement and retention? I do this by reinventing and creating stories through my social media. We keep things fresh and have fun, people love to see fun! You’re LA-based – how do you think this has helped or hindered growing your business? I think LA is at the forefront of so many creative movements. It's helped me as there's so much excitement in LA. Being here has allowed me to express my California dreaming – it's given me a platform. I go to Paris four times a year and I've seen the influence of Californian culture on the runways during Fashion Week and it makes me proud.
What’s your signature style? My personal style changes day-to-day, I can wear a blazer to work and I wear a lot of denim in the workshop. It's a French country club meets bohemian mix... if that's a thing? You’re a surfer – has following your own path resulted from a need for freedom to travel? Absolutely. I've never thought about it in that way, but yes. I'm a seeker and surfing offers that, finding new undiscovered places, it's a very mystical and imaginative world. Surfing has saved my life, and I just love the culture of it. It's minimal and at one with nature. You’ve partnered with e-commerce brands such as Matches Fashion, Net-A-Porter and Farfetch. How has opening up into this world
changed the business? It was early on when I decided to get into wholesale. I wasn't so sure of doing it. I still to this day keep a tight and limited distribution to only the best luxury boutique and online players, but through this I've been able to reach clients I didn't know I had and who didn't know the brand, so that's been a huge benefit. I guess it's been a sort of customer acquisition through those channels. What is your personal favourite piece to wear?
I have one hat that's natural and patina. Over the years I have had every single one of my team members sign it, so it has all these cool and different signatures. It's very personal.
Which Instagram accounts do you follow for inspiration? I love looking at NASA and interior decoration accounts, nature and interiors. Where else is left on your bucket list to visit if you could choose anywhere? There are so many places like: Cape Town, Madagascar, Iceland, Dubai, Sri Lanka... this list goes on. I'll go to the moon if I can one day. Do you have any pre-bedtime rituals? I make a to-do list for the following day.
What do you carry with you always when travelling? I carry my watch my uncle gave me when I travel. I find that it centres me.
What advice would you give to your younger self starting out? I would have said enjoy the moments and don't worry so much, everything is working out exactly as it's supposed to. If you had not launched Nick Fouquet, which other role would you choose career-wise? I probably would have worked for National Geographic or Patagonia. This issue is the ‘Go your own way Issue’ – what does it mean to you to go your own way? Going your own way, means to be free.
“When I build a collection I usually build a storyline on a certain geographic region. So, I will perhaps get accoutrements from Peru or Morocco based on the vibe of the collection”