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Thakoon reflects on 10 years in fashion

Designer Thakoon Panichgul at Barneys New York in Beverly Hills on Oct. 25. The retailer hosted dinners on both coasts to celebrate his 10th anniversary capsule collection.
(Charley Gallay / Getty Images)
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In just a decade, Thai-American designer Thakoon Panichgul has accomplished a lot.

He launched and sustained his own namesake luxury clothing label, Thakoon, as well as the contemporary-priced Thakoon Addition collection, which is sold in 180 stores around the world. He’s collaborated with both Target and Gap stores on cheap-chic collections aimed at different customers. And he’s made a fan out of First Lady Michelle Obama, who has worn his feminine-yet-sporty floral designs on several occasions.

But at age 40, Panichgul is part of a sandwich generation of American designers. He’s no longer a rising talent supported by the Council of Fashion Designers of America and Vogue magazine’s Fashion Fund, or one of the industry’s numerous other prize programs dedicated to identifying new talent, and too often cycling through it. And he’s not yet an established name in the vein of Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren or the late Oscar de la Renta.

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Nevertheless, Panichgul, who is privately funded and based in New York, is still very much in the fashion game. He’s just rolled out his first handbags at Barneys New York. The retailer hosted twin celebrations in New York and L.A. to celebrate Thakoon’s 10th anniversary, and also produced a capsule collection based on past best sellers.

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FOR THE RECORD
Oct. 30, 4:01 p.m. An earlier version of this post described Thakoon Panichgul’s line as self-funded. It is privately funded.
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While Panichgul was in L.A. recently, I sat down to chat with him about the perils of being a not-so-young designer, his appreciation of Hugh Hefner and the next 10 years.

Does it feel like 10 years or 100?

I don’t like to think about it, I’m always caught up with what’s next. But I feel like I’m just getting started. You put the pieces together and lay the foundation, and now it’s like gardening.

What’s been the biggest challenge?

What people don’t talk about is that there is a period when a young designer comes out, then six months or another season later another young designer comes out. It’s a lot of spinning, spinning, spinning. And people help young designers for a year or two, but then they move on. To build longevity, you have to stick with the program a little bit. OK, so you’re not a young designer anymore, but you do have a legitimate business. What does that mean? It may not be the business of Gucci Group, but how do you maneuver in between the newbies who are getting a lot of flash and the established ones who are making a lot of money? It’s honing in on what people come to you for.

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So what does your customer come back to you for again and again?

Ease, something feminine but with a twist, prints that aren’t overwhelming…. Women tell me my clothes are fashionable without trying too hard.

How did you get through the recession?

The economic downturn was challenging. But we got through it well because we just happened to launch Thakoon Addition at that time, and it came out when people were looking to not spend a lot of money. Timing is everything.

Do you know your customer better now?

I do, and I feel like I know myself better, too. Out of the gate, I was so focused on designing, and I had these ideas about construction that I wanted to put forward. I wasn’t thinking about the bigger picture, that this had to be a lifestyle. I wasn’t trained that way. Now, I know what women want from me and what I like to do. I used to think a lot and now it’s more off the cuff and passionate.

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You don’t have your own retail stores yet. It must be frustrating when store buyers don’t pick up the pieces in a collection that articulate your full vision.

It is. The retail landscape is shifting like crazy. From the fall runway, store buyers wanted to buy things that they knew were getting press coverage. So they bought the longer version of the blue rose dress, for example, and not the shorter one. For me, I would love to have my own store. And it’s in the works. A store in L.A. would be amazing because every time I come here, I feel the love because the women here understand the brand. A store is what I want from the next 10 years. We’ve been looking at spaces. I can see it and I can smell it, it’s just the execution that will take time.

Tell me about the handbag launch.

We’ve just launched exclusively with Barneys, but for spring we are opening it up to other distributors. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while, but with bags you have to find the right manufacturer, especially because the bags I wanted to do are very simple and high quality. We found a great factory outside of Milan. For Barneys, there are a handful of styles. There’s a clutch iPod case that can be worn cross body, a duffel and a shopper. For spring, there’s more novelty, including raffia ikat and snake printed with tribal-looking dots. There’s also a saddle bag. The prices range from $995 up to $1,695 for the duffel and more for snake and crocodile.

The spring 2015 collection you just showed in New York was really fun and spirited. What was the inspiration?

It was very lounge-y. After fall, with all the wrapping in heavy layers, you want to be bare. I was feeling soft but with heft, so silk jacquards and Hugh Hefner-type silk robes and pajama pants. I was also imagining the idea of something sensual, but with bohemian touches. To take a classic polka dot theme, but do polka dot beaded trim, for example. It was wacky and artisanal.

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What’s your favorite part of what you do?

I’m a morning person, so I get very inspired when I’m alone in the office, listening to music, going through books and magazines, which I do before everyone arrives. The process is my favorite part of what I do, because I find so much enjoyment in it. Recently, I’ve been going back to Elle magazines from 1986 and ’87. There was a lot of revolutionary stuff happening then. One particular editorial, a look styled with Nike surf shoes, has stuck with me. It’s very current looking, and the shoes are even better than sneakers!

For the latest in fashion and style news, follow me @Booth1.

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