Designer, model and blogger Anine Bing was born in Denmark, brought up in Sweden and is now based in Los Angeles.
I caught up to her on her recent London visit, where she launched the first part of her campaign.
She has just launched a global campaign with real women wearing her clothes in cities all over the world; Around the World in Anine Bing is just one of the latest innovative ideas the designer has put forward for her brand.
What inspired you to pursue a career in fashion?
I’ve always loved clothes. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve been creative in my own way. I didn’t have much money growing up, so I had to make the trends myself, so when flared jeans were popular many years ago I made them myself. So I always had that creativity in me. I was in the fashion industry in other fields. I was a model for many years, and blogging. So I learned so much from the industry, and then one day I felt it was time to have my own brand.
What is your favourite fashion memory?
Good question! For me, personally, it was when I opened my flagship store in Paris. That was a big moment – Paris is such an iconic city.
Does being a mother influence the pieces you create?
I guess so. I love to be comfortable but still look chic. And being a mother I want to look good, but I can’t walk around in super-high heels all day, so I make wearable, effortless clothes for mums and all the other women out there. I want it to be easy to throw on in the morning, and not too complicated, just a few pieces and that’s it. But still cool: a cool pair of boots and a leather jacket so you feel like a million dollars when you put on the clothes, but you can still manage to take care of your kids.
Which piece in your newest collection do you like best?
The jeans that I’m wearing – I’m a denim girl. When I started the brand I wanted to create the perfect pair of jeans and right now I love these. I feel really good in them and I feel all women should have one pair of jeans that they feel amazing in, that’s all you need. My other favourite will have to be this bag. My mum had a bag this colour in a similar shape when I was younger, and I remember the colour and I love it. It’s just a good everyday bag, and I am obsessed with the colour. And with the jewellery there is always something I like. All the pieces I wear are mine.
Anine Bing The Vintage Wash jeans, £180
Anine Bing taupe Madison handbag, £875
What’s next for your brand?
A lot of things. We are doing this campaign at the moment, Around the World in Anine Bing, I don’t know if you saw it on Instagram. I’m so sick of how everything is so fake and bought on Instagram, with the bloggers et cetera, they don’t wear what they love any more, just get paid to wear something. With this campaign we wanted to use real girls to be the face of my brand. Every month we are going to travel to a new city and shoot campaigns with real women. And it’s so inspiring for me as a designer to meet these incredible women of all different ages and body shapes and from different countries, so that’s what’s new right now. I am also continuing expanding in terms of stores; we have eight stores now and we have big plans for this year. I definitely want to open a standalone flagship store in London. We have the concession in Harvey Nichols, but it would be amazing to have our own store.
Anine with Kitty
How do you choose the women for this campaign?
We did the first one here in London, and I wanted an older woman. I wanted to show how the brand is all about diversity and there are so many incredible women in their 50s and 60s who wear the brand. I found this amazing woman [Kitty], she is 50 years old. I found her on Instagram and I just loved how she put the different pieces together, she was fun. She’s a lawyer, so it was the first time she’d ever done a shoot. There were too many good options in London, so since we’ve been here we met a second girl. This is Lucy, she’s in her 20s and also the typical Anine Bing girl, and we shot her, it was so nice to do this. They are both so beautiful but in different ways. And it was really nice to experience the different cities around the world and get a feel for each place. We don’t know where we are going next, we don’t plan ahead. We find a girl and we go to them. So that’s something fun we are doing right now.
Lucy in Notting Hill
What do you like best about blogging?
I love connecting with my readers and I have a very personal relationship with them, going through all stages of my life – when I was younger and confused and didn’t know what to do and then had my baby – and they have been following along. Now with the brand they are still there, so it has been an amazing journey with these women from all over the world. I love taking photos, and I love travelling and sharing beautiful photos, and I share anything from beauty tips to smoothie recipes and styling tips – it’s fun! I blog wherever I can, and whenever I have an idea. I always take photos because I think it’s a nice way of sharing. I still make photo albums for my kids and it’s so nice to print out the photos and look at them.
What is your favourite place in London?
I love Notting Hill as an area; it’s one of my favourites. We were shooting there and I was thinking if I lived in London I would want to live there and open a shop there one day. It’s so nice, like a real neighbourhood. For food, I went for dinner twice in four days to Chiltern Firehouse. The vibe is super cool and the food was great, and we are also going to try out Sketch.
Tell me more about the see-now-buy-now approach in your online store
I work differently from other brands. We launch new styles weekly, so there are five new styles every week on the website. And there is always something happening. We have a core collection with the classics and then I just add on new pieces. This is fun for me as a designer and also for the buyers and the customers as there is always something happening.
Where is your top travel destination for inspiration?
I love Bali – I haven’t been for a couple of years, but it’s an amazing place to go to – and also Paris and London. There are so many depending on what I want to be inspired by. For street-style I love London and Paris and New York and Los Angeles. I can’t choose!
If you could go on a shopping trip anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
Hmm. Luckily I never have to shop as I can make anything I want. The only thing I buy any more is vintage Chanel bags. If I were to go on a shopping trip I would choose an amazing flea market. We have one of the best just outside Los Angeles, actually – Rose Bowl, I don’t know if you’ve heard of it? I love flea markets for everything – furniture, things for the house, jewellery. I can get inspiration from the shape of old dresses, maybe a pattern – cool T-shirts and denim as well!
Who is your style muse and inspiration?
Definitely Jane Birkin and Kate Moss. I love their effortless ‘just got out of bed’ style.
Which are the bestselling pieces?
The Charlie boots, the leather-studded ones, are still our number one seller, even five years later. We sell a lot of lace bras, too!
Anine Bing Charlie boots, £560
Anine Bing lace bralette, £70
And an out-take from our interview when during her speedy London visit.
I’m generally obsessed with jewellery and Anine has a beautiful collection! Most of the jewellery pictured are from her own brand
The interview can also be seen on the DV Closet blog