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Husband-and-wife designers Andy Seokwon Kim and Debbie Wonjeong Yoon appear at the end of the Andy & Debb fashion show during Seoul Fashion Week in October.
/ Courtesy of Seoul Fashion Week
By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter
Many young designers dream of presenting their collection at New York Fashion Week. But only a handful, like designers Andy Seokwon Kim and Debbie Wonjeong Yoon, can turn their dream into reality.
The successful husband-and-wife design team has staged three shows for their Andy & Debb line at Bryant Park in the last two years.
In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Kim and Yoon talked about their experiences in establishing their brand in New York, one of the world's most competitive markets.
``It was our dream ever since we were students at New York Pratt Institute. We dreamt of showing at Bryant Park. But after we graduated and had some experience in the New York fashion district, we decided to launch our brand in Korea since we were Koreans and we wanted to start in Korea first," Yoon said.
Kim and Yoon launched Andy & Debb in Korea in 1999. The women's wear collection, with its romantic minimalist and feminine styles, quickly found success. They're also known for winning a design competition to create a uniform for McDonald's Korea.
Success at home allowed Kim and Yoon to pursue their dream of going international. ``We felt we had grown enough to expand our line worldwide. New York is our second home. We studied in New York Pratt Institute, we worked in NY, and we are familiar with the market and the atmosphere. But it was a lot of hard work," Yoon said.
Andy & Debb started their business in New York two years ago, and they have presented their women's wear collection at New York Fashion Week. Their collection has been praised for its impeccably tailored and stylish but wearable designs.
Recently, Kim decided to design a men's wear line, Andy & Debb Homme, which made its debut during Seoul Fashion Week last month.
Kim, who became well-known to the public after appearing as a judge on Project Runway Korea, said he had always wanted to design a men's collection inspired by the paintings of Mark Rothko.
``The men's wear line also has the same Andy & Debb sensibility and romantic minimalism," Kim said.
Owing to their success in New York, Andy & Debb was recently picked as one of the designers to stage a special fashion show promoting Korean fashion in New York in February
They offered some advice to young designers who hope to make waves in New York. While their brand is Korean, Kim and Yoon emphasized their designs are international.
``All the designers have to be very true to themselves. They have to have their own vision and originality … If the collection is wonderful, everyone can understand that. Fashion, art, design, it doesn't need language. You can just look at it and feel it. It doesn't need any translation. And you have to keep on trying and never stop dreaming," Yoon said.
cathy@koreatimes.co.kr
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