DANIELLE GUIZIO

1. Your eponymous fashion label DANIELLE GUIZIO aims to celebrate a woman who breaks out of the traditional bounds of womenswear. What is the story behind your brand?

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I grew up in the suburbs right outside of New York City. After high school, I went to school to study the business of fashion. Once I decided to start my brand after a major health scare that led me to take this leap of faith, I went into this journey with close to no fashion design experience. This is when I realized that I didn’t necessarily have to have it all “figured out”. Understanding the business backbone of my future career had helped me more than I knew. 

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2. Your story is a trademark dream of many young creatives striving to make something of themselves, but it could not have been easy for you. How does the idea of resilience play into your brand and what you create?

 

I have heard so many “no’s" before hardly any “yes's". Those experiences were of course immensely daunting especially undergoing such rejection once you’re already in a vulnerable place. It made pushing forward and persevering that much harder. The beauty of those moments is that there's a tiny voice in your head, it tells you to keep going. To keep pushing, to keep working even harder and not give up. It's up to you to hone into that voice and truly listen to it. 

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3. What is your design process like?

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Firstly I start with the ideas lingering on my mind and then it’s a matter of focusing on how I want to dream them up into existence. When I’m designing a singular piece, the idea is usually very vivid and I know exactly what I want. When designing our collections though, the process is a bit more extensive. Such as how we can curate the collection and have all the pieces create a feeling of harmony once they’re all merchandised together. Once the idea is to paper, we begin sketching out the garment. Once the sketch is approved we move onto the more digital aspect and begin creating the digital file into cad/technical flats. From there we approve every single detail of the garment; from the fit, fabrication, trims, hardware, button colors, hems, and I can still go on (haha). Once all is approved it is then handed over to our tech designer who brings the garment measurements to life which is then handed off to our factory. 

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4. What is a small piece of advice you would give to aspiring designers?

 

Lead with your intuition. If there’s something inside of you that burns like a fire from within guiding you to start achieving your dreams or goals, listen to it. You don’t have to have every single corner figured out. And most importantly, don’t let anyone hold you back from achieving exactly what it is you want to make of yourself throughout this lifetime. It won’t be easy, but it won’t be as hard as you’ve made it up to be in your head. Keep going, keep growing. 

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5. What will you always be a champion of?

 

Staying true to myself and supporting other people. There can be a lot of competition within this industry to be the best, but there is truly space for everyone to shine. I will always do my best to support and uplift other designers, entrepreneurs, and people in general.