SPOTLIGHT ON... Neous
MEET THE FORMER FASHION EDITOR SELLING STYLE AT A SWEET PRICE WITH HER SUMPTUOUS HANDBAGS AND SCULPTURAL SHOES
‘There’s a difference between minimalist and minimal,’ says Vanissa Antonious, the designer behind Neous. In other words, the brand’s sleek accessories are anything but boring. Founded in 2017, hit retailers such as Net-APorter love Neous for its shoes – styles with softly squared toes and graphic heels that elevate dressed-down looks. It’s unsurprising, given Antonious left a successful career as a fashion editor at Harper’s Bazaar UK to launch her label.
‘Part of that role was discovering new brands, so I got to know the market,’ Antonious says. She was familiar with the hallmarks of luxury accessories, and what the industry was missing. ‘I wanted to create something different, at a lower price point,’ she says.
That difference is in the details, with hints of her art history background and former job at fine art auction house Lawson Menzies evident in artful touches that reference surrealist sculpture. ‘There’s a twist to each shoe,’ the 36year-old designer says. But for every classic shape made cool with a butter-soft wrap fastening, there’s a practical touch. ‘I won’t make it if I can’t wear it,’ she says. So heels are capped at an 80mm height. ‘Pre-Covid, I was travelling a lot, and I couldn’t be bothered to carry more stuff. So I made shoes I could wear to the airport and for a weekend in the city.’
That practicality underpins the bags Neous launched last year, with shapes able to be styled multiple ways: shoulder bags that can be worn across the body, totes you can clutch. ‘It’s a way to be playful without buying more. It’s nice to use colour and texture on bags and shoes to add excitement to outfits… I sound like I’m writing a shopping page!’ the former editor says. Well, that’s comfort, craft – and our job – covered.