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Interview
Fashion and Beauty Monitor’s
International Editor Laura Hinttula caught
up with NEWGEN MEN-awarded designer
duo Emma Hedlund and Saif Bakir of
CMMN SWDN ahead of their
autumn/winter 2015 showcase at London
Collections: Men.
What is your earliest fashion memory?
Emma: It was in the third class when I found
out that the jeans I thought were awesome
were uncool; it was devastating. I was
definitely a late bloomer but then made up for
it.
Saif: I don’t recall my first fashion memory but I do recall how embarrassed I was when I stepped
out in my jeans backwards referencing Kris Kross in a small town in Sweden. I had become a
fashion victim.
You met in 2004 while Emma studied womenswear at Central Saint Martins and Saif
studied menswear at London College of Fashion. Has fashion always ‘been your thing’?
Emma: From a really young age I was sketching, scribbling and painting and I remember always
being interested in fashion, but more from an arty standpoint. I studied graphic design and
illustration in Sweden before heading over to London in 2004 where I finally got sucked into the
fashion world.
Saif: My dad was partner in a small manufacturing unit in north London where I did my first
internship at the age of 15. Since then fashion has always been part of my life.
You headed up the design team for Kanye West in Paris side by side before establishing
your own label. What’s the best thing about having a ‘partner in crime’? What’s the worst?
We’ve known each other for years and at college we used to pick each other’s brains and share
ideas. We found at an early stage that we are compatible on so many levels and share a similar
aesthetic and style. Sharing the workload and having someone to bounce ideas off is amazing
and so helpful when you run your own business. Naturally we don’t agree on everything and
stubborn as we are small issues can easily become unnecessarily big and then you wish that you
were in charge and could command… As we’re also a couple outside work you can sometimes
miss missing someone...if that makes sense? We spend all our time together, all day, all night and
don’t ever get a break and a chance to miss each other.
You hail from Sweden. Does this come through in your designs?
Swedish culture and identity is usually described as simple, open to international influences and
egalitarian. We foster our Swedish heritage, but it is only one of several sources of inspiration for
us. We’re influenced by our diverse experiences considering our studies at London College of
Fashion and Central Saint Martins in London, working for Wooyoungmi and Kanye West in Paris
and LA.
Where do you go for inspiration? What kind of physical places? And where do you have to
go mentally?
London naturally holds an easy access to inspiration - sources within art and culture, with world-
leading art colleges and museums - this is where we find most of our inspiration. We also find a
lot of inspiration through music and films.
Who has been the greatest influence on your career so far and why?
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