'Project Runway' star Korto Momolu breaks with Fashion Week to regroup, raise money
theGRIO REPORT - At this point, the "Project Runway" finalist Korto Momolu sees abandoning the tents at New York City Fashion Week as critical to her development...
Korto Momolu came onto the fashion scene as a breakout star of Project Runway’s Season 5. While the Liberian-born designer did not win, she ended the season as the first runner up, and earned a runway show during New York City’s Fashion Week. Since those heady days, Momolu has hit more career milestones such as designing for the female president of Liberia. Yet at this point in her life, the married mother of a young daughter is ready to simplify her career approach.
During February’s New York 2012 Fall Fashion Week, Momolu presented her “Monaco” collection in the hip basement of the Cellar Bar lounge at the Byrant Park hotel, which is close to where Fashion Week used to be traditionally held. (The official tents have since been relocated at Lincoln Center for the seasonal presentation.) Despite this close proximity to a former fashion nexus, Momolu told theGrio that after Fashion Week in September — the most important of the two held annually — the designer plans to remove herself from the scene.
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As models struck poses while stationed on raised platforms, the Little Rock, Arkansas native detailed her future plans for expansion — through this retraction. Forgoing the typical runway display of frocks for her Fall show, style insiders sipped cocktails and viewed clothes on static display as Momolu addressed her assembled fans and pals.
“I just want to thank all of you — press, friends, family, everyone that has come out,” Momolu told the packed house, which included Real Houswives of Atlanta star, Dwight Eubanks. “There are so many people in my life who have supported me, and brought me to where I am in my life.”
And at this point, Momolu sees abandoning the tents at Fashion Week as critical to her development. It costs at least $100,000 to put on a very simple show during what is one of the most hyped events in New York City. Yet, this media blitz does not always translate into effective marketing.
“With fashion week, it’s entertainment to a certain degree, it’s publicity to a certain degree,” Momolu explained about her needed change. ”[B]uyers do come out, but it’s not like back in the day when people would come to the shows to make purchases. Now it’s just entertainment.
“And then the week after, the buyers call you and say, ‘Hey, I want to come see the line.’ I can just do that on my web site — a grassroots method,” the designer continued.
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The throng of stylish people of all races that poured into the Cellar to see her work was proof that Momolu possesses a vital base of support. Author and blogger Nana Brew Hammond, who writes for the style blog FlyandMighty.com, agrees that Momolu’s connection to her fans can take her where she needs to go.
Follow Alexis Garrett Stodghill on Twitter at @lexisb “Korto really knows her audience and has done a great job staying connected with them via shrewd collaborations and personal appearances that make sense for her brand,” Brew Hammond, who authored the novel Powdered Necklace, told theGrio. (Powdered Necklace is a teen girl’s coming of age story set in Ghana.)
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“You can see her multiple influences at work in her garments,” Brew Hammond said of Momolu’s design approach. “The prints and silhouettes are evocative of West Africa; and there is usually a juxtaposition of some glamorous element, [such as] sequins against a more natural fabric or cut.”
The elegance of Momolu’s 2012 Fall collection is evocative of the timeless looks that inspire her. “I love Oscar de la Renta, Carolina Hererra, Valentino — classic designers,” Momolu said. “They may not be the first word on everybody’s lips, but they’ve been around for ever. I want to be that person.”
To become a solid brand name in fashion with the longevity of a Valentino, Momolu knows she must focus on one thing — getting into stores. “You want people to be able to buy your clothes, see people wearing your stuff out, and fulfill the commitments for the people that want [samples] for magazine and celebrities. I want to get to that level.”
To progress to mass production, Momolu realizes that finding financial backing is more important than indulging in the electric fun of New York City’s fashion scene.
“People come to my show every season, and I get, ‘I want, I want, I want,’ and then I don’t have it, because I don’t have a backer,” she explained. “So I need to seriously sit back, and find a backer, and get it done. Fashion Week is glamorous, but you want to be in the store.”
Even more important to the designer? Making time to be a great mom. Momolu’s decision to take a break was informed in part by the toll her ambitions have taken on her seven-year-old daughter. “Being away from her for five months made me feel like I abandoned her,” she said of her time shooting Project Runway. “My priority is spending time with my daughter.”
But that does not mean Momolu is giving up on making it even bigger.
“I’ve proven my name, and shown I’m worthy of showing at Fashion Week. I’m a real designer. I have a name, I have talent,” the designer said of her continuing climb. “All the pieces you saw in the show tonight — I made all those piece. So I am underground and doing it. If I don’t do it, the dream stops. I have to work extra-hard to get here. It’s worth it for me.”
Follow Alexis Garrett Stodghill on Twitter at @lexisb
