Tag: 2015

Somewhere between timeless British chic and modern liveable luxury nestles up-and-coming label, Cocoon. The masses are flocking and the brand’s recently gotten press at Belfast Fashion Week. We linked up with designer Sara Hall to learn more about what the hype is all about, her grassroots social media start, and just what kind of butterfly this Cocoon is going to become.

 

Basic Stats

Label: Cocoon Luxury Wear

Age: Fledgling; Cocoon Baby launched February of 2015

Based: Newry, Ireland

Vibe: A modern Brit classic. Fresh, but feels vintage in all the right ways. Lifestyle meets luxury. Authentic Harris tweed throws a proper nod to everything Isles.

The hustle behind the bustle: Sara Hall, PR guru turned fashion designer. 33. Wife. Mum. Inspiration.

Work it: The ideal UK outer layer. The Cocoon cape is built for versatility; mix it into your everyday and worry never. Over a skirt to the office or with denim on the school run; disheveled or done. Nude lip. Bold lip. Louboutins or Blundstones. Seriously. It’s the perfect addition to your F/W capsule.

+ Tell us a little about Cocoon. 
Cocoon was founded in February 2015. My daughter had outgrown her baby cape and I couldn’t find anything similar in shops or online, so decided to make my own range of children’s capes, using ex-designer tweed cloth from fashion houses in Paris and Milan. Soon I was inundated with orders through Facebook, sold out on pre-orders within a matter of weeks, and had many requests for a range of women’s capes, too. Fast-forward six months and we’ve launched the Cocoon Luxe Autumn/Winter 15 range of women’s capes, in six fabulous Harris Tweed designs.

+ You started out building your customer base exclusively on Facebook, and have experienced a really organic growth in brand awareness. Any thoughts on social media as a community for fledgling designers?

Most fashion companies apparently don’t have a whole lot of success with Facebook advertising, but we have found this to be our key social market. My advice would be to know your customer, have a product you are extremely proud of, and don’t be afraid to take risks.　It’s really only been a few months since I made the firm decision that this would be my career moving forward.　It has always been a serious endeavour for me, but there’s definitely been a lot of feeling out and learning and sheer determination along the way.　　　

+ How would you describe your personal style?

I like to mix various styles up – teaming a vintage piece with something from the high street and something high-end.　I have always had a love of vintage and bohemian fashion, you will always see me in one version of those styles for sure.

+ Fashion is a new enterprise for you, correct?

Yes, a very new industry for me. Both my husband and I have a background in Advertising/Marketing, which is the field I have been working in since graduating from University. I have always had an interest in fashion but never dreamed I would be working in the industry. We do our own promotion and branding, so my background is definitely coming in handy!

+ There are now several options available for both babies and women at Cocoon. What’s next? Where do you envision Cocoon in 5 years?

Yes, coming into this A/W 15/16 we will have a hooded and a collared cape for women; available in 3 sizes, and a loose one-size-fits-all for toddlers (age 1-4/5). All are available in 5 distinct patterns of Harris Tweed.

As for what’s next; well, the ball is rolling in the background and we have some big ideas! We first need to get through the impending madness of the Autumn and our ‘official launch’.  We are expecting things to really escalate as our next batch of stock arrives in October and we switch the focus from production side of things to the various marketing and PR that will really start to kick in to coincide with the arrival of cooler weather.　　

For the future, well this may be a bit ambitious but we’ve set it as a goal anyway: to be known as THE Iconic luxury cape brand; as trench coats are to Burberry, bags are for Louis Vuitton, Hunter are for Wellies. Our primary focus will be on capes, as we’d like to continue to refine and perfect our core designs.

The feedback from customers so far on our customer service, packaging and the quality of our capes has been exceptional. This is an area we would like to stay on top of as we believe our customers really are our business.
+ 5 things you need daily or you just can’t deal:

1. Water and lots of it – with liquid chlorophol (grass product) to my husbands dismay as every time he goes to drink water it is green!! My body craves it and I drink around 3 litres a day.

2. Family time – we have a very active and hilarous 2.5 year old, so spending time with her together is a must.

3. Sleep – without my 8 hours of sleep I spend a lot of the day complaining how tired I am….it is not pretty.

4. Internet – for Cocoon most of my working day is spent online. Unfortunately I also have a little bit of a Facebook addiction – thankfully it is starting to die down due to Cocoon time spent on there.

5.　A to-do list – I have been writing these since I can remember and these days the list is getting pretty long!

+ What’s your favourite Harris Tweed? (ours is Hepburn Earth, hands down!). What do you pair yours with?

This is like being asked to pick a favourite child! But I would say I am very partial to the Sienna Mix.  I have probably worn this daily since I got in the first sample. It really goes with my blonde hair and pale colouring. I team the Sienna with white jeans, loafers and a simple top for a day look, or dress it up with heels and a nice top for evening wear.　The Navy Grace is also great for being so versatile – it can be worn with any day look and I have worn it to a few weddings as well.