Tom Van Dorpe Talks New Direction at The Kooples

With an already illustrious career as a magazine fashion editor, stylist, and designer, Tom Van Dorpe has taken his talents to Paris for his next role as Creative Director of The Kooples. After years of consulting for other brands, the Belgian designer leads the vision on the brand's new Spring/Summer 2021 collection. To give his insight on the label's new direction, Van Dorpe spoke to L'OFFICIEL about the inspiration behind the newest collection and what he brings to The Kooples as a whole. 

L'OFFICIAL: You have been a fashion editor for V Magazine and V Man, you have styled Rihanna's catwalks for Puma, and you have consulted for a number of brands. You like the taste of the challenge.

TOM VAN DORPE: Fashion is a giant playground where the possibilities are endless. Starting in this environment by working for a magazine is great for meeting photographers, coming up with an idea, and selling it. And that's exactly what I'm doing today for The Kooples. In addition, I have always worked in men's and women's fashion, like today at The Kooples, which is quite rare for a stylist. Finally, even if these modes are not the same, they have a lot in common, and even more today.

L'O: How did you rethink the brand?

TVD: As if I had reworked the editorial line of a magazine. I kept its DNA, very strong, but I breathed modernity into advertising campaigns as well as on social networks or through e-shopping, each silhouette of which I developed for more digital visibility. Even though I didn't study fashion like a designer would, being a stylist has allowed me to work very closely with the team.

L'O: The Kooples is a story of fashion, but also of casting.

TVD: Last winter's campaign allowed us to visually redefine the brand's image through couples—newlyweds, parents, brothers, sisters, and soul mates. Then I developed the key looks of the season with the fundamentals of the brand, always in a fairly rock 'n' roll spirit. For Spring/Summer 2021, I gave a context to the collection with references and a range of colors in order to be able to tell a story and link the collections for men and women. Before, each person defined themselves in relation to an established style—'70s, rock, boyish, etc., whereas now we mix everything up. Each garment does not have to correspond to an exclusive style but, on the contrary, must be able to extract from it to be mixed.

L'O: The Kooples is an accessible luxury brand with an urban rock spirit. What touch did you add to this DNA?

TVD: I like the idea of mixing strong and very unwise silhouettes with my “clean” approach. I think that's the look of the moment.

L'O: Will we find elements of “la Parisienne” in your collections?

TVD: When I met Romain Guinier, the CEO of the house, for the first time, he explained to me that The Kooples woman has a rebellious elegance. And that's exactly how I see the Parisian woman, always very elegant, but with an unexpected, casual side. It's very nice to have this woman that everyone adores as a starting point for my collections.

L'O: Who are your muses, the couples who inspire you?

TVD: There are, of course, the legendary Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder, Françoise Hardy and Jacques Dutronc, but I did not want to start from this idea to give a new spirit to the brand. It's difficult to say who are the muses of today, so I preferred to focus on atypical couples of today. For Spring/Summer 2021, it will be Vincent Cassel and Tina Kunakey because they 100 percent fit this new story that I am writing with the brand. He is charismatic; she, very modern and of the moment, plays with glamor and naturalness and all the codes of femininity.

L'O: In addition to being the star of the new campaign, Tina has made a collection for you.

​​​​​​​TVD: A wardrobe for Vincent with natural materials, beige and black, which she also appropriated. While on him it's relaxed, on her it's more boyish. Sharing a closet is part of her style, that's what she does on a daily basis. We, therefore, find a magnificent straight blazer, a white shirt, a well-aged T-shirt. In addition to this collection, she has imagined a bucket bag which I hope will have the same success as the previous collaborations.

L'O: What about your Spring/Summer 2021 collection?

​​​​​​​TVD: The idea was a “positive rebellion." The Kooples notion of rebellion is often dark, but with the year we have just passed, I wanted to soften things up with organic materials and a more minimal style, in the first part of the collection, and in the second, prints, pastels, and light denim.

L'O: Arriving in a new country, working for a new brand, all this in the midst of a pandemic—has it affected your work?

​​​​​​​TVD: For 15 years, I traveled every week between fashion weeks and shoots, it was very intense. When I moved to Paris, I wanted to focus on a brand. The pandemic is a real shock, and focusing on The Kooples allows me to move forward. And when I look at what we've accomplished, we can be happy—whether it's the collaboration with Tina, the work with suppliers for organic materials, the unification of men's and women's collections, or the diversity in our castings with gay and trans couples in order to be as inclusive as possible. Honestly, it's pretty amazing.