Adolfo Domínguez grew up in his father’s tailor shop in Spain, surrounded by all the makings of design and style. And while he ventured to Paris to study art and film, he returned to his roots, launching his eponymous brand in the ’70s with a men’s ready-to-wear collection. The line has since expanded to include women’s clothing and accessories, while keeping the vision of quality and elegance. Having dressed the cast of “Miami Vice” in the ’80s, Domínguez recently returned to South Florida to open several storefronts. Most recent is his shop at Town Center at Boca Raton. In honor of his store launch and spring/summer 2017 collection, we met with Domínguez to learn more about the brand designed for the intellectually refined.
On becoming a designer:
I didn’t choose. It chose me. I was born in [my father’s] workshop. I used to play hide-and-seek between all the [fabric] rolls. Then I went through my studies. I had forgotten about [fashion] because my dream was to become something. I finished in Paris where I studied cinema. Then I couldn’t get into [cinema] because it’s a very difficult industry. I thought, ‘My God, I’ll go back home.’ I decided to go back home, and so that’s why I say, ‘That’s the way I was born.’ I came back. I didn’t choose. It chose me.
On his inspiration:
It’s not a painting. It’s not music—music is fabulous. It’s not literature because obviously art is very important, but, in fact, what inspires me is when you walk anywhere in the world—in any city, in any street—you cross people constantly. There are some women who dress so well—five percent maybe, not more of women—who really take care of what they dress. They work on it. They make of dressing poetry. You can feel it. They combine silhouettes with textures, fabrics, colors, in such a way that they are really the people that inspire you. People combining a sense of things to play with in fashion. They are not designers, but they are artists. It’s a way of expressing themselves.
On his S/S 2017 collection:
We use knitted [fabrics]. We use stretchy things constantly. Both in ladies and both in men’s. Clothes today should caress you, should embrace you. It’s not the way it was years ago. [Clothing] was just to show power, to show status. It isn’t anymore. Things have changed dramatically. The main thing is sporty things, comfort, cozy. It should be cozy but still alive. We dress to be loved. Everybody wants to be loved. We dress ourselves because the clothes [are] a second skin.
On the brand’s sustainability efforts:
I’ve been very conscious about it all my life. Now, today it’s a trend. Fortunately, it’s a trend. I went through all my life trying to communicate these values without any success at all. I’ve been an ecologist since the very beginning. I was always conscious and in contact with this movement, which is a size movement. It influenced the way I work. That’s why I use linen—linen is more sustainable than cotton. I use cotton as well, but I use a lot of linen. I usually make the collection paying attention to these things, analyzing the carbon footprint and making decisions on it. I try to be a responsible manufacturer.
On shopping advice:
Try to buy things that make you beautiful, not just tendency. Follow tendency if you must. Otherwise, it’s useless. [Buy] anything that is beautiful on you. That is first advice. Second, be a responsible consumer. Pay attention to the carbon footprint.
On his impact:
You have to make people beautiful. Beauty is scarce. You should be careful, so that’s why I always say, ‘Don’t follow trends, make it fit on you.’ Clothes should make you confident. Look much more through the windows than through yourself—that’s a secret as well. You know yourself much more if you look at people, if you observe people.
Adolfo Domínguez’s Spring/Summer 2017 Collection Highlights:
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