Daphne appeared on ‘people you may know’ on my Linkedin page and I was immediately impressed by her walk-in business. I couldn’t resist and I sent her a message to which I got an immediate reply with her inviting me to a Zoom meeting. From the first seconds, we connected through the multiculti aura we both cherish and enjoy!
With a Turkish father and a French mother, Daphne studied, worked, and is currently living in Paris with her Chinese husband. Her studies are in graphic design, fashion and sustainability at the University of Arts, London, along with Strategy studies while she holds an executive MBA. She has had an amazing career starting as a freelancer in graphic design, then holding the title of Art Director for Vogue Turkey, building the foundation in fashion to enter Swarovski with an amazing 9-year career starting as Trend Analyst and Graphic Artist to Director Product Design Accessories, Writing Instruments and Watches. This means that if you have a Swarovski definitely came out by Daphne’s design team.
She is currently working as Creative Director in +86, an agency connecting and introducing brands from Europe to China with great success.
But it wasn’t only this amazing story of her. She shared with us her opinion about the future of fashion, this summer’s catastrophic mega-fires, climate change, her personal and business plans for the future, and valuable creative advice for Beauty Magic.
Above all Daphne is a very sensitive person about the environmental impact and the future of humanity. A person who has a special aura that makes you feel her energy even through a Zoom connection. She is calm, open, positive, confident, and at the same time approachable like the girl next door. And that balance elevates you to a different level when you discuss with her.
I couldn’t do anything better than to share with you, as much I can through this written interview, her amazing trip in Fashion, as I believe that Daphne is one of us. Someone who loves fashion sees the world with different eyes and wants to live a life without boundaries or stereotypes. I think that her story will help some of you with your next steps in the fashion industry. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did and share with me your comments.
Daphne, you started as a Graphic Designer. What drove you to study this?
Since high school, I have been very interested in and attracted by advertising, images. I was also at ease in the field of communication, talkative, and already fluid in French, Turkish, and English so I wanted to develop the visual dimension of communication. I was and still am, very much driven by the relationship between content and form. Studying graphic design has given me the fundamentals of composition, the hierarchy of information, reading orientation and strengthened my sense of aestheticism. Graphic design is a powerful means of expression that serves many industries.
Following your career and studies, I see a very strong personality who knows what to do and how to achieve it. Paris, being a very demanding and competitive environment, how difficult was it for you to be established and create your career there?
Right after my graduation, I have been very lucky to get some orders this is how I started working as a freelancer versus joining a company or an agency. For more than 6 years I have been working with brands, corporations, advertising, and communication agencies. A very enriching professional start is also good for networking. I have always shown flexibility and demonstrated agility to remain attractive and fight the competition. Being French has also very much helped to establish my career in Paris. Despite the international dimension of Paris, it remains not an easy place for foreigners to settle, a bit conservatory with a taste for keeping things entertain between oneself. Paris is a very demanding place as it is the city of art, fashion, luxury, gastronomy, hospitality. It is a must to keep up with what’s going on in the city, to remain as much as possible updated. It is also to be clear on what makes you different from others, cultivate what makes you unique and special.
Art director of Vogue Turkey. Was Vogue a dream come true or was it just an opportunity that appeared in front of you? What is the story behind?
Actually both! A spontaneous and fortunate meeting in Istanbul has led me to meet with Vogue Turkey’s chief editor who was looking for replacing the Art directors who were leaving Istanbul. Everything happened very fast as it clicked right away. You know this feeling of being at the right time at the right place. Well, it is one of these! You can imagine how thrilled I was, as a French/ Turkish to join the Vogue Turkey just freshly launched in Turkey. My main mission has been to pursue what was just freshly settled in terms of art direction, overall image, and layout. I remember the great energy and the enthusiasm of the team and also the whole industry which was in-full-development at the time photographers, agents, models, etc in line with the boom of Turkish’s fashion scene from ready-to-wear, couture to jewelry and accessories.
Working for Swarovski in Paris with an amazing career like yours is a dream for many people. How easy was it to get that job? How was your first interview?
I remember SO well my first itw, I was so excited about joining the company. The first impression always counts! I was wearing a black cardigan embroidered with bright Swarovski crystals to already testify my fascination for the crystal. I was deeply attracted by the international aura of Swarovski, and by the incredible crystal material that enables Swarovski to be so creative. The ITW started in French and ended up in English. Being fluent in English was a true asset as I have been working the following 9 years essentially in English with my peers in Switzerland, Austria, and Hong Kong. I keep a pretty good memory of this ITW, quite fluid, and straightforward. I joined the International Creative Division in February 2012. In the Trends Department, first where I was in charge of trend analysis, seasonal theme, storytelling, brand content, and brand image. I further then pursue product design and product development.
Your title in Swarovski was Director Product Design Accessories, Writing Instrument and Watches. Could you please share what you did under this fascinating title? I would like our readers to get a glimpse of the whole process behind the product they see on the shelf of a store, in a known brand like Swarovski.
Swarovski is famous for its crystal jewelry. To keep building on its success the product diversification strategy has been put in place. The three categories of ACC, WI, and WA at the time were all segmented in small teams. Each category had its own production timeline. With the trust and support of my peers and superiors, I built a hub regrouping the ACC, WI, and WA categories as the adjacent categories to jewelry. The idea was to optimize the production process starting from the creation phase. This new setup has led to building a stronger team, sharing various product type knowledge, expertise, and design capacity. Appointed and responsible to lead my creative team, my role consisted in ensuring a unique crystal and jewelled-signature in everything we designed from smart accessories to pens to watches. Each new product family or theme was attributed to one designer but always with a collective review. An inclusive way of working that has been very positive in terms of team spirit and a great opportunity for the designers to expand their knowledge and to design another product type.
The first impression always counts! I was wearing a black cardigan embroidered with bright Swarovski crystals to already testify my fascination for the crystal. I was deeply attracted by the international aura of Swarovski, and by the incredible crystal material that enables Swarovski to be so creative.
And one day you decided that this is the end of the trip with Swarovski. Was it a difficult decision or were you prepared for it? What made you take that decision? A new career path or just the need to stop for a while, take a deep breath, and identify your options and opportunities with a clear mind?
I have spent almost 9 years at Swarovski where I learned a lot where I had the chance to meet and work with great and inspiring people. Swarovski enters in a transformation era and so did I. As simple as that! Also, the covid-19 has been like a call to reset and take time to step back, reflect and think about what I want next in my life.
I know that being under the wings of a brand name means that doors open, invitations, and opportunities for networking are there. Do you feel that doors slammed shut after your exit from Vogue or Swarovski?
I’d rather believe that we have the ability to create opportunities not only when working for prestigious brands/entities. Being an entrepreneur requests and calls for successful networking strategies. Our worst enemy is our fears and it should not interfere with the will to connect and interact with others. Think always about the relevancy of connection, the mutual interest of this connection. We all have something to offer that fits with one’s needs.
Was fashion always the industry you wanted to work for or you discovered it along the way?
I love fashion for its creativity and for what it says and shows about people. It tells a story, the type of person you are. I like to read fashion in its societal dimension. The fashion industry is one of the biggest, it is very rich as well as very complex which promises future discoveries as it keeps evolving. I am very much willing to pursue working in fashion but not exhaustively. I am more and more keen on working in the beauty industry which is more self-entered rather than self-exposed.
How has your multicultural life —Turkish\French heritage, French living, And Chinese marriage — influenced your career?
I was born and raised in Turkey from a French mother and a Turkish father. I came to France when I was 6 years old. At home, we were speaking French & Turkish. I started to compare the languages their differences and similarities in wording, meanings, or expressions. From there I started to pay attention to cultural codes, cultural mixes, and influences. My career is international it could not be any different.
Now living in the Chinese culture for more than 10 years has increased my sensitivity to intercultural management. It can really bring great clues on how to work with multicultural teams and in an international setup. This multicultural life is very enriching and very inspiring. It shapes a vision. I like to cultivate what is unique, special, and proprietary. Globalization has the tendency to push towards too much unity. I prefer to entertain and to create unexpected bridges. It is also good for innovation.
Did I tell you about ‘the secrets of working across 5 continents: Thriving Through the Power of Cultural Diversity’? This book brings an authentic and inclusive perspective to meet the challenges of cultural diversity. I have been one of the 145 contributors who have lived and worked in at least 2 different countries across 110 countries invited to share life and work stories, captured in 4 chapters: 1-Visionary & Authentic Leadership, 2- Nurturing People & Culture, 3- Innovative Design & Creation, 4- Inspiring Communication & Relationship. My participation was in Design and Creation as you can guess!
Me also having a multicultural life and two nationalities, when I meet people with a multi-culti mindset I feel really excited. So, I want to ask you about it. You are married to a Chinese guy and that makes you a French/Turkish\Chinese couple living in France. How do you manage to keep in contact with your families and how has this cultural diversity helped you?
I keep switching from WhatsApp to WeChat 😉 I am not a FaceTime person. Vocal conversations make me feel closer to the person I speak with. It is more intimate to me. Luckily we are in the digital era with powerful communication and social media applications that enables us to stay in regular touch with our beloved ones. I have downloaded WeChat since 2011 and this actually has helped me a lot to understand China’s digital ecosystem, to name only one of the most powerful Chinese social media. I see already how the western world is getting more and more inspired by China’s platforms and applications. No matter what and how amazing digital communications can be there is nothing else than be with your beloved ones in face to face. I had a good catch-up with my Turkish side this summer. I hope to be able to go to China soon both to see my family-in-law and friends also to compare with my last trip to China in October 2019.
This multicultural life is very enriching and very inspiring. It shapes a vision. I like to cultivate what is unique, special, and proprietary. Globalization has the tendency to push towards too much unity. I prefer to entertain and to create unexpected bridges.
You are, obviously, a very creative person. Where do you look for creative inspiration?
I am an observer person. I like to watch people how they live, what they do. I like to think about people. Picture and figure them when I am in a creative process. I use to create personas it is a rich methodology. I am also very curious. I scout artists, designers, writers of any type – food, objects, photography, sculptors, painters. Creativity is such a broad discipline that has the power to recoup a big number of fields. Context and environment are also favorable elements for creativity. Especially when they are not too repetitive or monotone. Diversity and new situations are positive factors to stimulate creativity.
I read an interview with Vera Wang where she said that she was available at all times for work. No matter if it was a Saturday night out with friends, or a Sunday evening relaxing in her house, if the phone rang then she would answer and be available. I know that you are married, how do you keep a balance between work and family? Do you agree with Vera or do you have a different lifestyle?
I do not mind working 7 days a week as I love my job and the field I work in. To me, the most important thing is to have off times no matter if it’s on Sundays or Wednesdays. I try to manage to have quality time with my family, friends, and also for myself. Of course, when you work in a company, the weekdays’ schedule is important to be respected as it is part of a collective organization and work setup. But I see interesting things happening post-covid-19 like flex offices or fully remote positions. Working from home can be tricky. Work can be too invasive I truly recommend being self-disciplined with some breaks, off-screen, getting some air, etc. I love to run or walk, stretch or do yoga. I believe in the balance of mind, body, and soul with some social times and alone times.
The pandemic hit the fashion industry as well and last year it pushed fashion companies to move to digital solutions. Do you believe that digital fashion can be an answer to sustainability and inclusivity issues?
Fashion brands have no option but to become digitally-savvy also to adapt and keep up with digital transformation. It is fundamental for fashion brands to redesign the entire consumer-brand relationship because there are no more standard consumer segments, no more geographic restrictions, and no more one-size-fits-all solutions. Digital fashion is already more inclusive.
Already pre-pandemic, fashion brought an eco-responsible dimension in the design and production phase. The pandemic has reinforced brands to rethink and relocate production (new emerging brands, D2C brands build sustainable production in their supply chain. And for the established brands, production is partially relocated and transformation is in progress. It is not easy to review entirely a whole established production process but if treated as a priority it can be.
There is also the idea of doing less but better; the pandemic was a drag on the state of consumption, which led us to rethink the volume of collections. Indeed, overproduction is increasingly strongly criticized. In fact, production is reviewed and improved, but the volume remains constant. As long as growth is based on the sale of new products, the problem of overproduction will remain.
This leads to the growth of the second-hand market and sharing economy.
Pandemic has been an accelerator on digital development, beyond e-commerce, providing an even more creative and inspiring experience (video content, augmented reality), immersion, and also interactions. The fashions weeks, justly disrupted by the cancellation of events have opted for live online fashion weeks with possible interactions and dialogue or the possibility to cover different time zones at the same time for collections’ presentation.
It brings a sense of commitment, open dialogue, proximity. It breaks this elitist, inaccessible image of fashion weeks’ front row.
This summer was tragic. Climate change hit us in a strong way. Both our countries suffered mega-fires. In Italy, the highest ever temperature (48,8 C) in Europe was measured last July. Recently I read an article in the Financial Times that said we have to learn to live with extreme environmental phenomena. What is your message for people who were impacted by the fires and do you believe that this situation is irreversible or that we have time to change it by taking action?
The call to take action is definitely there. It should not be an option but a must. We are almost 8 billion on the planet and will be 10 billion by 2050. If we all act consciously, take actions, even small I hope we will be able to at least slow down the spread of the extreme phenomena. We need to help nature to get recharged. In some countries, governments are very involved in environmental issues. But the world is not one on that level. It is very sad to see nature burning this summer. Animals died, people have been hit, some have lost all they have. We are not safe from fires or other environmental dramas happening again. We have to be supportive and look after one another. If we tend to be more planet-minded and use our creative capacity towards this direction I want to believe that we might make a positive change.
Our worst enemy is our fears and it should not interfere with the will to connect and interact with others. Think always about the relevancy of connection, the mutual interest of this connection. We all have something to offer that fits with one’s needs.
What is your prediction about fashion in the next decade? Will we make it to improve the digital fashion lifestyle (3D designs, 3D prints, digital avatars, digital wardrobes) in order to allow us to reduce overconsumption and help build a sustainable environment or should we find another way?
It is a learning curve. 3D prints or digital wardrobes, digital showrooms, digital fashion events shape the fashion industry transformation towards a more sustainable and eco-friendly landscape. Digital brings an experience to another level but not everything can be, neither should be, dematerialized. I feel confident that we will find a relevant balance. I am fascinated by how avatars have moved beyond the generic. How much their presence has grown in our lives both as branded-avatars as well as personal-avatars which allows a user to create a fantastical representation of his/her personal style, sometimes reflecting what they aspire to look like. Avatars are extremely relevant for brands and overall for the fashion industry. Digital fashion brings therefore great opportunities for new designers to emerge but also users to explore new style territories. The digital fashion lifestyle embraces more easily a user’s multi-facets and is a great way to explore consumer sub-segmentations. Together with the digital transformation, the real future of digital fashion is here to make the real/virtual worlds more fluid, values more diversity and inclusiveness and if combined with motivations centered on the environment, then it will be a big collective win.
Fashion brands have no option but to become digitally-savvy also to adapt and keep up with digital transformation. It is fundamental for fashion brands to redesign the entire consumer-brand relationship because there are no more standard consumer segments, no more geographic restrictions, and no more one-size-fits-all solutions. Digital fashion is already more inclusive.
I know that you work with +86, a creative agency, based in Paris and Shanghai, connecting two worlds. Please share with us more about what you do, who your clients are and what they should expect from +86.
We create content that translates across cultures. At Plus 86, we tailor cross-border brand expression and China-dedicated content creation for brands willing to communicate in China. China is growing and changing fast, brands need to adapt their communication constantly. Keeping in line with the brand’s DNA, we create content taking into account expression territories and consumers’ profiles within the context of China’s cultural codes. And FYI, +86 stands for the communication number to call China, so connecting the world with China. Our team bridges the gap between Europe and China. Composed of French and Chinese talents, the Paris team works closely with brands’ HQs, while the Shanghai team provides us with up-to-date local market trends analysis. We combine the French know-how to create sophisticated and beautiful advertising campaigns with the Chinese agility to work fast and adapt quickly. We are currently working with several brands from the beauty industry, most precisely with skincare brands. The demand for skincare brands in China keeps growing but the market gets more and more competitive with strong local brands. Our work is to provide the best creative answers that fit the Chinese market. The digital ecosystem in China is very specific, as well as the customer experience. So our job is to solve cultural adaptations issues related to cultivating a brand presence in China. This is why we claim ‘Plus 86, creativity beyond boundaries’ 🙂
What should we expect from Daphne in the near future (your projects, your new goals)?
Connecting the dots. There are specific pillars in my life, both professional and personal, that I try to combine: cultural diversity, creativity, image and design, international and china marketing. There is a quest to bring more sense in what I do as well as to keep learning in my field of expertise. I also started this year to teach about creativity and I am very much willing to pursue this experience. I want to be close to younger generations they are the ones who will shape our future. I am excited about the idea of transmission between cultures and generations. I have also started to learn Chinese and I can tell, not a piece of cake! And if the pandemic allows to travel again, explore and discover new regions of the world. On the top of my head, I would like to go to Latin America: Buenos Aires Argentina, Patagonia in Chile/Argentina. To mix between cities and breathtaking wild regions. Get a glimpse of how people leave in urban and more retired areas. Get inspired by other cultures, traditions, believes and put our five senses in excitement through colors, smells, landscapes, patterns, sounds, the light, the crafts.
As an art director, what advice can you give me regarding Beauty Magic? (I wish for it to grow as a magazine and to have the opportunity to collaborate with Daphne in the future. People like you make this world brighter, aesthetically better, and more powerful.)
Thank you for asking my opinion on Beauty Magic. As I do not speak either read greek, I will comment only on its visual aspect and structure. I would like to know how do you come up with the name Beauty Magic. What’s the story and idea behind it? I am intrigued, I guess to better understand BM’s visual identity. I see a strong editorial feel in the art direction. I suggest playing even more with text sizes and beautiful typographies, maybe a mix of 2/3 different fonts to help the hierarchy of content. The layout could also play more on the text positioning and images’ arrangement to create a striking design and be more attractive for the reader. I would like to offer a wider space for visuals (homepage). I would definitely keep what works nicely its clarity, the Black and white + 1 single color. I would be very happy to follow up on this with you, the major point being what is orientation you want to give to the evolution of Beauty Magic.
As we said goodbye and my MacBook screen faded out to my wallpaper I felt blessed to have met Daphne. But this is not enough. I have more questions and I’m pretty sure that Daphne has more to share. Mostly I miss this positive and friendly vibe that Daphne carries with her all the time. So, I will not say goodbye but à bientôt as the French say. We have a lot to discuss and I promise to come back with more of Daphne.
I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did and I’ll be waiting for your remarks and questions in my email.
