To some, it could appear that LaQuan Smith has left no stone unturned this year. Between the Met Gala, presenting two collections at New York Fashion Week, a unique partnership with Samsung Galaxy, and attending the 2024 CFDA Awards the designer has had a jam-packed year. His NYFW collections were met with fanfare and for good measure were well-attended by A-list celebrities. Even with all of these highlights happening in real-time, one notion rings loudly for Smith, pouring into the next generation of aspiring designers. “I had never done that before,” the designer shares in reference to young designers attending the CFDA Awards alongside him over a video call. “It was great having the scholars accompany me along with my muse, Victoria Monet, who was also dressed in LaQuan Smith. It was such an amazing event,” he adds.
A few months ago at NYFW in collaboration with Samsung Galaxy, the designer debuted a “Lucid Dream” sleepwear micro-collection. As an extension of the partnership between LaQuan Smith and the tech brand, the mentees were able to attend the CFDA Awards. Notably, prior to the ceremony, the students went on a tour of Smith’s studio. They were provided an early look at the designs he created for Victoria Monet and Teyana Taylor before they debuted.
During our conversation, LaQuan expressed that he realizes the necessity of mentorship especially since he had a few who he says nurtured him. “I think it’s only right that I pay it forward.” Smith also explains that since fashion is a tough industry it’s highly important when navigating the space to have someone who can guide you. “I think just having the platform and having Samsung [help] me amplify that and empower the future generation,” he said.
Below we catch up with LaQuan Smith over a conversation that spans what this creative era is like for him, his partnership with Samsung, the importance of mentorship, and more.
ESSENCE: How would you describe this era of your life?
LaQuan Smith: I am still building, I'm still creating. There is a constant need for inspiration. I feel like in a time right now where the world is in a very weird place, I'm just constantly trying to seek inspiration, trying to find new ways of telling stories, and sharing my experiences through my lens as an African-American designer in terms of building a luxury brand. I think that right now is the most important time to inspire. It's the most important time to create and dive into creating [while] giving people something to be hopeful for and have a sense of optimism. That's where I'm at creatively.
What can you tell me about your Samsung partnership?
With Samsung's help, I designed a limited edition men's and women's unisex sleepwear collection that was inspired by technology, the Galaxy Ring, the Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra, [and] the Galaxy Z Fold6. I got a chance to spend time with pretty much all of the products, and I believe technology and creativity go hand in hand. It allowed me to dive into the elements of "Lucid Dreams." I started taking a look at all of the ways that these products inspire me and I was ultimately inspired by the luxury idea of sleep, and that's how I came up with this concept of "Lucid Dreams," and it's a beautiful collection that I think incorporates the idea of fashion through the lens of technology.
What was a major source of inspiration for your latest New York Fashion Week collection?
I think for me, the root of inspiration for LaQuan Smith is always just the idea of New York glamour. It's always about this idea of sensuality and creating really fun classic, yet provocative silhouettes that women can be inspired by. To wear LaQuan Smith is truly an experience and it really does stand for this idea of being unapologetically sexy. And I want to always continue to keep that core DNA consistently and make sure that I'm creating a product that's modern and progressively fashion forward. I think for me, that's always been the start of the inspiration is making a product and designing a collection that a woman or a man can feel empowered by.
Have you had any moments this year that were previously bucket list items for you?
I've had a great year. From dressing Kamala Harris to dressing Beyoncé too, [and] going to the CFDA [Awards] with the incredible mentees, [and] working with Samsung, it's been a great year. For me, it's just been about building a supportive network, [and] being able to balance my success because it takes a lot out of you. I just also want to remember that it's about maintaining my creative motivation and always making sure that I'm doing the necessary things to find inspiration in my daily life and also through my travels, through my experiences. There's been a lot of growth. There's been a lot of failure, but at the same time, handling the industry pressure.
I'm proud of being able to stand firm in a lot of the difficult situations that I have been in and being faced with some of the biggest challenges, building a brand. I'm happy to have overcome them. I'm happy that I've been able to create and implement changes to be able to build and grow, and I'm still doing that. I'm still in this phase of growing and creating, but I mean, I think that I've done such an exceptional job in terms of creating a brand in a very unconventional way, and I'm most proud [of] that.
What advice do you have for students coming up in the industry currently?
Think about leaving an impact. Think about focusing on the lasting impact of your work. I know we live in such an era where everything is so short-term and fast-paced, and everybody wants everything so tangible, but it is about how are we defining the measures of success and think about longevity. Don't think about just the short term, but think about long-range goals. Just push the agenda of staying true to who you are, know how to adapt to change, know your audience, and engage with your audience. I think that's what makes me the most authentic: vision, growth, brand building, and ultimately accomplishments.
I've been seeing with Gen Z sometimes they think that a lot of folks are overnight successes and that you don't necessarily have to be gritty and put their best foot forward at all times and be a workhorse for honestly eight to 10 years for things to pop off.
I always say to the young kids–slow and steady wins the race. it's always about celebrating the small victories, the small wins. Those things truly, truly do matter. I remember once upon a time, it was hard for me to get my manufacturing in order. At one point I was designing everything, sewing everything myself. I mean, it is about small increments. It's about small victories, and I think that those victories matter and we have to continue to celebrate ourselves and making sure that we are moving the needle forward and making sure that we're doing the right things.
I'm trying to instill some of these things into Gen Z. I feel like it's tough sometimes to explain. You have to sometimes do things that at times may not feel connected to what you're most passionate about in order for the return to really come to you.
I think that there is such a thing [as] balancing commercial success with artistic integrity. You have to recognize the business side of fashion and understand what kind of demands that requires without overshadowing your creative vision and [for] some people, it's very tough. It's a very tough thing, but it's about focusing on projects that ultimately inspire you. I mean, why do something for a dollar, do something for coin if you're not even going to put your heart into it, if it doesn't push you, if it doesn't inspire you?
I think it does go hand in hand, but with that being said, it is also about the power of no. You don't have to say yes to everything. I think it's about setting up, just understanding how you're aligned with the projects that you're presented with, zeroing in on projects, and creating this ultimate idea and the scale of your dream wish list.
What advice would you give to an aspiring designer or someone who's starting off that is having a hard time keying in on what their narrative as a designer is in terms of codes?
I have managed to maintain a very distinctive brand identity within this very competitive industry. I just continued to think about my woman. I started thinking about who my woman is and what kind of woman that I was inspired by, and then it got even deeper because beyond designing, it was like, well, where is she wearing these designs to? Where does she vacation? What does she drive? What kind of automobile does she drive? What kind of hotels does she stay in?
I really started breaking these layers down to try to understand exactly who my target audience is, and it was just for me, it was very clear to me that my woman understands quality and she understands luxury and she loves her body and she has an affinity of New York City and the true authentic culture [here].
So it was very easy for me to just tap into things that really resonated and amplified all of those different moods and aesthetics. My woman loves nightlife, and so it allowed me to go into reflective textiles and things that felt more sparkly and holiday and celebratory. I just think that it's about writing down maybe five to 10 code words of what your brand resonates, [and] what your design ethos is, and then really lean into that on all aspects. Really think about your woman, not just through a collection or particular dress, but think about your woman or think about your client from a 24-hour perspective. I think that that would help build out and carve out a DNA for any designer, really understanding who exactly are you designing for.
Are there any forthcoming projects that you can speak about that you’d like to shed light on?
Right now [I am] continuing to push boundaries with fashion and technology. I'm looking forward to going with Samsung to the Met Gala. There's so much more to do. Continuing this partnership in terms of mentorship, and I'm sure that we're going to be able to expand on that in such a greater way.