Minutes with John t & tola adeagbo

British Nigerian John Edwards founded Florian London in 2012 with partner Tola Adeagbo. Coming from a design background - his design philosophy is where ‘passion meets creative practicality’. John spent his childhood in multicultural London from where he draws most of his inspiration. His designs are also influenced by the nature of Nigerian women - whom he describes as “strong on the inside yet stylish and feminine on the outside”. Tola Adeagbo graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Business Management and Financial services. John’s aesthetic vision, social commentary, design experience combined with Tola’s business and financial skills,

has established Florian, an inspirational accessories label for an aspirational consumer.

Tell us a little about yourself and your background? How and when did you decide to become a designer? What was the first piece you ever created, and does it compare with your vision of your brand today? How is a Florian handbag made, what are the typical materials used to create a perfect peice? Most of the handbag collections you have launched and showcased so far are variation of your first collection, do you intend to move away from these designs? You recently debuted your hand painted pieces, what was the inspiration behind these limited edition pieces? What is your favourite bag from your collection and why? Where can the Florian London design be found or where and how can it be purchased? In your own words who is the typical

florian London woman? Any plans for the Florian brand in Africa, Nigeria in particular seeing you are of Nigerian descent?

JOHN: A purple Mahiki Bag was the first bag we created which was a bucket bag, it had a gold square buckle closure which accentuated the piece. I think the Mahik still compares to the vision of the brand and might soon make an evolved appearance....

JOHN: I’m John Edwards the Creative Director and this is Tola the Brand Manager, we are the founders of Florian London, ironically we are partners in business and partners in life. I studied Engineering in my early years with the hope of designing...

Our aim is to constantly create designs that are relevant to current lifestyle trends and designs our customers would love and appreciate. As a result we cannot afford to standstill – but to push the boundaries and think outside the box, design wise....

to 3-4weeks. Once the sample is received, it is then inspected to see if any design changes are required to improve the piece. Once a perfect sample is signed off we give the ok to go into production. After production is completed, there is a...