One year ago, BA Fashion Pattern Cutting alum, Adiam Elias, was awarded free studio space at Poplar Works, after successfully pitching her brand, ADIAMELIAS. Poplar Works aims to help smaller businesses grow to their full potential. The additional support of the partnership with LCF’s Graduate Futures, LCF Business and Innovation and Poplar Works, alongside the opportunity of having a studio space, has enabled ADIAMELIAS to bridge the gap between high quality garments and sustainable manufacturing processes.
As a contemporary womenswear brand which offers garments that are made sustainably and ethically produced, ADIAMELIAS operates a pre-order business module which lowers the chances of producing unwanted garments that could end up as overstock. Since then, Adiam has gone from strength to strength, uniting comfort, innovation and style with her belief that “the things we choose to surround ourselves with matters, and what better place to start than with what we wear”. We caught up with her to reflect on her residency with Poplar Works and what’s next for ADIAMELIAS.
Happy studio anniversary! How has being awarded studio space in Poplar Works shaped the growth of ADIAMELIAS?
Thank you! Getting the studio at Poplar works has helped my brand massively. I used to work from home and it was very challenging.
To actually have a professional work space where you can be creative and network with other creatives is a huge opportunity and has helped me a lot in the way I process things and the general day to day activity.
It must take a lot of drive to build a brand that operates so differently to the fashion landscape we know today. What’s the most valuable thing you learnt through the process?
There are lots of things you learn when you are running a sustainable fashion brand, But the most valuable thing I have learned so far is to know what your brand value is and stay the course. Specifically when it comes to Fashion and Sustainability it is hard because you are not just building a brand but also have to educate clients on the value of shopping sustainably.
Looking back to your study, how did your time at LCF and the opportunities available help you develop your business?
I graduated in 2018 from BA Fashion Pattern Cutting and studying Pattern Cutting was the best decision I have made! I loved it and find it to be so useful even now that I run my own business in terms of production and working with factories.
I honestly had the best course leader and did lots of external collaborations with designers which also led to my part time job in my second year. This led to a full time job when I graduated!
This opportunity has helped me work with different luxury brands, And has definitely helped me gain a lot more skills and given me the opportunity to see how brands run their productions, manufacturers, shows and designs. These are all transferable skills that I now implement in my business.
From our previous conversation it’s clear that ADIAMELIAS sustainability and ethics at the core of its business practice. What do these things mean to you?
It means Innovation, disruption, challenging our systems and supply chains to do better. It's doing things differently and sustaining us, the environment and our communities!
How your brand champions slow fashion is really inspiring. What are your hopes and goals for the future of ADIAMELIAS as you expand out of your studio in Poplar Works?
Thank you. My hope is to create a brand that's focused on creating community and inclusivity no matter where you come from or what your background is. To create a community where slow fashion, designing, producing, slow consumption and living better is celebrated.
The goal is to find innovative ways of doing retail without mass production. I see it as a brand that supports the local economy, generates a healthy work environment and creates higher quality and durable products. I believe the long-term goal is to run a sustainable fashion brand that fosters change in the way consumers interact with the products.
What one piece of advice would you give to LCF students and alumni who are embarking on their own entrepreneurial journey?
Entrepreneurship is not easy and will require a lot of resilience and love for what you do, but it's all worth it! Learn to run at your own pace, healthy competition is good but also remember that you run in your own lane.