Tanya Taylor on Dressing Strong Women & Running a Joie de Vivre Brand
She is Toronto-born and New York-based, and since her eponymous label launched in 2012 she has dressed an impressive array of women: Michelle Obama, Aidy Bryant, Rashida Jones, Liv Tylor, Taylor Swift, Beyonce, and the First Lady of Canada, just to name a few.
Her name is Tanya Taylor and she is well-known for her exuberant, upbeat and optimistic approach to fashion. Her designs are intelligent, joyful, full of color, and adorned with wonderful, hand-painted prints. Taylor was named “one to watch” early in her fashion career and in 2014 made the shortlist for the prestigious and career-changing CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund. She is also stocked at Saks, Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, and Nordstrom and after her 2017 collaboration with SNL star Aidy Bryant, Taylor has committed to offering styles in sizes 0-22 with every collection, making her one of the few brands to offer size inclusivity. Talk about a socially conscious #girlboss!
FashionFiles caught up with Taylor during her recent visit to Chicago, and chatted about everything from how she started her label, who and what inspires her, shoe obsessions and so much more!
Let’s talk about your wonderful brand and how it all started. For all those readers who may not be familiar, what should they know about the Tanya Taylor label?
I started in finance originally, and I grew up in a really entrepreneurial family who always were kind of saying, ‘What’s your business going to be?’ The only thing I knew is I loved entrepreneurship, I also loved art, and I loved making women happy. I’ve always liked connecting with people. So I didn’t even know fashion existed because growing up in Toronto, there wasn’t a fashion industry. I didn’t have a mentor that was in fashion. So I moved to New York after I graduated in finance from McGill, and I started working for Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen. They were starting Elizabeth and James at the time, and I worked there for three years. It was one of the best experiences to see how two things can come together — two passions you have. They were also a contemporary brand, they were starting The Row, and I got to kind of learn a little bit about contemporary versus designer [fashion]. And I like contemporary because I like talking to more women, and I like the challenge of listening to a customer more.
Walk us through the Tanya Taylor aesthetic and describe the Tanya Taylor girl.
We are very optimistic. We are very colorful, very print-driven and energetic. I always think that she’s on the move; she is not reading a book in the corner, but really making an impact in the world. Our girl ranges in age — she’s age 18 to 70. She’s is also size zero to 22. So we have this really wide range of women, and it’s women who like to express themselves through fun and color.
What about your design thought process? I know that you hand paint your prints, which is incredible. How did you come up with this concept?
I always painted when I was a kid. My mom gave me the entire basement and let me paint all the walls. Color and painting color has always been a way I express myself, my whole life. So when it came to prints, I just don’t want to buy them. A lot of times brands have print appointments and buy vintage prints, and I just didn’t ever find anything I liked. So I started making them and it’s my favorite part of the job.
Are there any brands that you look up to?
I love Stella McCartney. I love that she has a masculine-feminine balance, and a sense of humor. I love Sies Marjan in New York. Dries van Noten is always a favorite. But they’re all designer price points. I think a lot of the Copenhagen brands are doing really cool things like Stine Goya and Ganni; they know who their woman is.
Fashion inclusivity is starting to pick up speed, especially the last few seasons, and in Europe in particular, in the last season. How do you feel about fashion inclusivity, not only about age and race, but size in particular?
I think it’s critical. I think that it’s a pillar of what we stand for. We in all of our marketing, all of our production, all of our design process, we’re thinking about age differences, size differences, nationality differences. And that’s just how we design from the beginning. So I think that for us, it’s easy because we embody it, and I think the industry really needs to make it a core part. There’s something like eight shows during Fashion Week that actually show size diversity, and we in our show, show size zero to 22. But we also have models in their 70s who have more confidence than the models who are 25. And that’s pretty inspiring! You walk in and you see a 70-year-old looking amazing and smiling and it gives you hope for what you can be when you’re in your 70s. And so I think it’s a positive, positive thing.
I want to allow our readers to get to know Tanya Taylor as a person. What was your first job?
My first job was working in a vintage store in Toronto called Paper Bag Princess. I was in charge of organizing the windows and doing alterations on very intense couture gowns. Scary, but fun.
What’s a typical day for you in the office?
It is very busy. I get to work around 8:45 a.m and then I’m in meetings all day long. Half design, half marketing. The best days are when there’s times we have brainstorming sessions, like planning for a longer-term project.
What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
Probably managing being creative and being CEO of the company at the same time. I’m running the company, but at the same time having to design all the collections. You can’t study it. We have 30 employees and it’s learning about people and figuring out how to make time for the creative and non-creative aspect of the job.
What are some of the designs you are most proud of?
Definitely the first dress that Michelle Obama wore. She looked fantastic! Also, the piece we did for Aidy Bryant I feel really proud of. There’s been some other special moments, like when we did the dresses for the First Lady of Canada when she went to Japan. We’ve done stuff for really cool women that stood for something. Like Taylor Swift, Chelsea Clinton, Michelle Obama. There’s been a really nice kind of different range of women that respond to our designs.
You are dressing all the bossladies out there!
Whenever I see them wear any of our designs in a way that’s not perfect, and it’s just their own personal style, and they are killing it while doing something cool, I feel that I’m kind of a tool in a tool box . It’s pretty awesome.
What are few fall must-haves from your collection?
I‘m loving knit dresses because I feel like they can fit anyone and they’re really easy to dress up or dress down. And I like the idea of pop colors and lights and sparkle. I’m also really into blazers. We have some really great plaid blazers and I like those carried over soft dresses.
It’s time for the lightning round. A few fun questions. Number one: Who would you swap closets with?
Giovanna Battaglia. She is a friend of mine and I get to see what’s in her closet from time to time, and like I would do anything to have access to that.
Who is your style icon?
Well, I don’t know if I have one. I like modern day women that you just get to see glimpses of every day.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Popcorn.
Last show you binge-watched?
Succession.
Last thing you purchased?
Maybe these boots. These boots are great. I love shoes. I wear my own clothes so I need shoes!
Tell me something about yourself that I wouldn’t expect.
I loooove reggae music. [ Ed Note: she laughs; my jaw drops] I’m a really good reggae dancer too!
If you are not a fashion designer, what would you be?
Lawyer. Like a fashion layer. To help designers understand their businesses.
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This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
