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Ahead of his runway show on Monday night, which featured two styles available for immediate purchase via a Rakuten partnership, Sergio Hudson sat down with Glossy to take part in our New York Fashion Week podcast series. Along with discussing his design signatures, his choice retail partners and his approach to fundraising, he shared the challenges he experiences as a Black designer. He also talked about his clients, including Beyoncé and Michelle Obama, who “choose quality and fit over brand name.” Below are highlights from the conversation, which have been lightly edited for clarity.
The power of celebrity
“Everybody thinks that, just because you show at fashion week or just because a celebrity wears your coat, you’re at a certain place in your business. We’re not struggling, by any means, but we are a young business — so we can’t afford the big marketing campaigns and billboards in Times Square like some brands can. But what dressing a celebrity does is it gives you that type of exposure, because there are so many eyes on them and what they’re wearing. So, that’s one of our marketing tools. It’s actually how I got to where I am — because when we started out, we didn’t have any budget for marketing. Dressing celebrities was how we built the brand. … Michelle Obama wearing our dress at the 2021 inauguration changed the entire business overnight. Six months later, we were in every major retailer.”
A fashion industry unicorn
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“We absolutely own 100% of the business. I’m not opposed to investors, but … I think fashion is a hard business, in general. And then being a designer of color, there are still those road blockades for me. I was talking to one of my friends who is not an African American designer, and they couldn’t believe that I had no offers from investors or people wanting to buy into the business. And I told them that I’m not investable to most people, … because it’s something that nobody’s ever seen. Nobody can imagine a Black designer having a legacy brand, because it’s never happened before. There are no Black designers with brands that you can see going on forever and ever and ever. We haven’t made it there yet. … There are no other Black designers that make suits, make coats, make dresses, make all these ready-to-wear pieces. I am an American sportswear designer, and I’m African American. So I feel almost like a unicorn sometimes.”
Becoming a recognizable brand
“Of course, as we’ve seen the economy change, we’ve seen some decrease [in sales], but the support for our brand has not wavered. … Our clients are extremely supportive, and I’m so thankful for that. And we are solidifying our place. People now send me messages or tag me on Instagram, and they say, ‘Is this a Sergio Hudson suit? It has the cut of a Sergio Hudson suit.’ And that just makes me feel so great, because people know what we’re doing and what we’re bringing to the table. And that’s one of the most rewarding things”
