// SOUTH-ASIAN SENSATION
FROM THE VIBRANT COLORS AND UNIQUE TEXTURES OF DESIGNER ANADIL JOHNSON’S NATIVE BANGLADESH COMES THE MUSTHAVE JACKET OF THE SEASON.
From the vibrant colors and unique textures of designer Anadil Johnson’s native Bangladesh comes the musthave jacket for autumn.
If there was one common thread to her varied, globe-trotting childhood, says local designer Anadil Johnson, it was fashion. Even after starting a finance career in Chicago years later, Johnson’s memories of clothing cultures from around the world continued to loom large in her mind.
“There was a lack of globally inspired clothing that’s made sustainably [but] also maintains the edge and cool-factor of other luxury brands,” says Johnson. But now, with her just-launched line, Neval, as well as its debut Monarch Collection, she is aiming to change all that with a colorful array of sophisticated bomber jackets and scarves rooted in her native Bangladesh—but manufactured on Chicago’s North Side.
Both the collection’s cropped Boho bomber ($695), with its blousy bishop sleeves, and more classically cut Urban bomber ($795), feature the region’s elegant jamdani muslin fabric, handmade by women in rural Sonargaon. “For us, it’s about being socially conscious about how we’re treating people and the planet,” says Johnson, “not only in the product but in the manufacturing process.” That process means minimal waste, with any leftover fabric repurposed for the collection’s sleek scarves ($195). Bonus: Both bombers are also reversible.
For future collections, Johnson is looking to Latin American artisans to broaden Neval’s reach; meanwhile, her Bangladesh team is preparing a sheer, kimono-style layering robe for fall—yet another piece of the designer’s history, coming home to Chicago. nevalstyle.com