Valais stylist Kevin Germanier: “My mom has as much power as Lady Gaga!” – rts.ch

Kevin Germanier wants to become the king of fashion with his rhinestones and sequins, his profusion of colors and his knitwear handmade by his family circle in Valais. Women essential to the success of the rising star of haute couture. The creator pays tribute to them on Saturday in Helvetica, the program of interviews with personalities who make Switzerland shine.

Since his debut in 2018 in the French capital, Kevin Germanier has had a good track record. The designer born in Granges (VS) has dressed many stars: Heidi Klum, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Rihanna, South Korean k-pop stars and Brazilian celebrities. Its stitches made in Valais are also showing the third season of the series “Emily in Paris”, available on Netflix.

Emily in Paris… in a set by Kevin Germanier. [Netflix – RTS]The Valais designer explains how actress Lily Collins, who plays Emily, came to wear her colorful skirt-jacket ensemble: “It’s always a bit of a gamble. We give the clothes, but without guarantee that it will going to wear them. She really loved the outfit, the mix of colors. It seems that she also asked the stylist how it was done, because she has an ethical concern. We told her about the famous Valais knitters”, he says.

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Family affair

Being the originator of the costumes for a series that is a hit on Netflix is ​​good for business. But Kevin Germanier also counts, and perhaps even more, on his Valais ambassadors. “People want authenticity. For example, we did a collaboration with La Redoute. I posted [sur les réseaux sociaux] my mum who wore a dress and that boosted sales,” slips the 30-year-old.

My mom has as much power as Lady Gaga!

Kevin Germanier, fashion designer

Kevin Germanier recalls that he owes his success to his family circle. As a child, he draped his brother and sister, his first models. Today, her woolen creations are made in Valais by around twenty women, including her grandmother Simone and her great-aunt Denise, both in their eighties.

Germanier is a family business. Some creations are knitted in Valais, in particular by the designer’s mother and grandmother. [RTS]The stylist tells how he embarked on the adventure. It all starts when his mother asks him what to do to stay awake in order to follow television programs until their outcome. She will therefore knit for Germanier, her son’s brand. Then, one thing leading to another, “it’s a bit of jealousy”, smiles the young man. “Grandma Simone said to him, ‘Ah! You’re knitting for Kevin! You didn’t tell me!’ From one jealous to another jealous – I say this obviously with love – they are nineteen now…”

>> To read also: Kevin Germanier, the Valais designer who combines glamor and trash

Parental support

Nineteen women who don’t just knit. They also send him their ideas. “I am not a knitting specialist. I have no training. There are certain crochet points or certain technical points that I do not know”, indicates the designer. And to insist: there is no question of using your family as a marketing tool, to create “false images”. “When grandma is introduced [pour la promotion d’un produit]it’s that she’s working on it”, he underlines. A question of authenticity…

For me, the new luxury is transparency

Kevin Germanier, fashion designer

Without his entourage, Kevin Germanier would not have thrown himself into the bath of Parisian fashion. “It was sure from the start: I don’t embark on this adventure without having my parents who are behind me and who support me morally,” he says. At the beginning, for example, he asked for help with his billing, which he did not know how to do. Here he is now running at full speed, taking care of everything, having little time to design his future works. The ambition he now displays is clear: “to build an empire”. His vision of success: “to become the artistic director of Christian Dior”.

Interview by Philippe Revaz

Text: Antoine Michel