Melody Ehsani

You were initially a law student. When did you realize you wanted to work in fashion?
At the core of it, the reason I was drawn to law was because I had an affinity and drive towards justice. At the time, I didn’t have enough experience or exposure to other disciplines, so I felt law was the only vehicle to be active in [that]. Then it seemed paradoxical, because I did all these internships and I was completely disenchanted by it. I hated it! I went on this quest to see what I loved and what I was good at. I fell in love with product design, and fashion was the easiest way to enter [that] world. Over time, I realized, “Oh, I can incorporate justice into anything I do. It’s just about the vehicle of how to get there.”

Were you nervous about making that jump?
Yeah! In my whole life, I think it was probably the scariest decision I ever made because I didn’t have any reference for it. It felt like I was jumping off of a cliff and I didn’t know what was going to happen… It felt like I was letting my family down; I was letting my friends down. But I had to follow something else in me that was seeking more fulfillment.

What drew you specifically to streetwear?
It’s funny. When I started, “streetwear” wasn’t really a term yet. What I resonated so closely with was countercultures and anything that disrupted the status quo… I didn’t want to wear clothing that was so gender-specific. I wanted to wear things that boys wear, and I wanted it to fit me properly; I wanted it to be designed thoughtfully. I was tired of buying Nikes in kids’ sizes because they weren’t available for girls. That whole movement has developed into streetwear.

You’ve worked with so many big names. How do you decide who to partner with?
There are certain things I was able to master. Like, I can design jewelry with my eyes closed. The same with apparel. But there were certain things I wanted to make that weren’t in my wheelhouse at the time. Those are the types of companies I collaborate with. If I ever want to make denim, I feel like Levi’s, they have hundreds of years of experience, so I would rather make it with [them] than try to make it myself… As an independent designer, it’s really expensive and time-consuming to go into a new category. It’s like starting from first base again.

When you’re designing new collections, how do you find that creative spark?
It could start with anything… Sometimes it’s a story, a news article, a movie. It’s always [my team and I] reimagining the world we want to see or create, and then interpreting that through colors and patterns and designs… We’re currently working on a collection, and I was really inspired by the play Lysistrata. It’s essentially about a small country that was in a civil war for years and years. All the women in the country were like, “We’re not having sex anymore because we don’t want to bring any children into this [world].” After 4 days, the war ended. That was the initial inspiration for us, like, “Wow, that’s so powerful. If women banded together and took a stand on something, we could really make significant change.” So we took that story and ran with it in a modern-day setting and from a global outlook.

As your brand expands, how are you handling growth?
It’s really hard. When I first started, I just thought I would be designing things. I never thought I would be running a business and dealing with production and management and marketing and all these other things… It’s really important to figure out what resources you have at hand and where you need to bring in people where you’re not really strong. Even with something like [increasing our size range], it seems like an easy thing to do, but when you’re a small business, it’s a lot more difficult. I think it’s also a good opportunity for us to communicate that to our customers, which we’re trying to get better at so people are more informed about the process.

What do you look for in up-and-coming streetwear designers?
For me, it’s just passion and motivation. It’s never about a resume or experience. A lot of the most successful people I’ve seen are researchers. They do their research and they’re interested in the world, they’re interested in people, and they are able to express that interest through design.

Streetwear is a male-majority field. What’s your advice for women looking to get their foot in the door?
It is male-dominated, but there are so many women delving into that world. It reminds me of the hip hop conversation. I remember there was a period of time where people were like, “Hip hop is dead.” And it’s true; commercially, it has changed significantly. But in the underground scene, there were all these MCs coming up that were so amazing. I feel like that’s how it is with streetwear.

How so?
It’s like, “Oh, women have such a hard time.” And it’s true, the systems are set up in a way where it makes it difficult for women to penetrate. But at the same time, there are all these women coming up that are interpreting things from their own lens and trying to create something. Like Bephies Beauty Supply, and there’s this other brand, True to Us, that I follow on Instagram that’s incredible… Again, just being that researcher and having your ear to the streets and finding places where you can fit in—whether it’s interning for a men’s company and then going from there, or finding women that are like-minded around you that you could possibly glean anything from—is important.