ABF + LOVE HERO "CHANGING THE NARRATIVE"

This month on our ABF socials we are running a competition to win the t-shirt Josh is wearing in the below image. Come on over to our instagram or Facebook for a chance to win this t-shirt, an ABF travel pack and a 3 months subscription for yourself or one of your friends or family members.

ABF:

Let’s start by telling everyone a little bit about your story Josh – how did you get into fashion and what led you to where you are today?

Joshua:

Thank you for having me.

I began my career in sports and transitioned to fashion whilst living in Italy, it had such a profound influence on the way people lived it truly inspired me. I also stayed in the part of Italy famous for designer accessories so I was always surrounded by it. I was taught to make shoes by close friends who had fashion factories that went back generations for the likes of Gucci and Prada. Fashion is a way of life and expression and it inspired me so much I ended up changing careers and here we are today.

ABF:

What is LOVE HERO all about – tell us the narrative behind the label and what current narrative in the fashion industry you are trying to change?

Joshua:

LOVE HERO is a concept dreamt a few years back between my partner Tanja and friend/designer Heather (currently in NY) many moons ago. But life took over, kids + family responsibilities, it was always on the back burner. Last year during Covid I was made redundant as a fashion design + manager for DAKS. When this happened I had some time to revisit what I actually wanted to do. Ultimately working for myself and creating a brand that had meaning and a focus has always been something that has inspired me. A brand with a purpose, a vision and a dream. During this time I had a fantastic opportunity and was cast as a contestant for a show on Amazon prime called Making the Cut (Season 2), presented by Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn. This gave me a platform to launch LOVE HERO and bring it to life.

 ABF:

What has been the hardest thing about getting LOVE HERO off the ground?

Joshua:

The hardest thing about getting LOVE HERO off the ground is ensuring the message has been portrayed correctly and clearly. As we are currently self funded we are also constantly thinking of creative and cost efficient ways to develop the business and make a difference. LOVE HERO is focused on people and the planet, with this comes a responsibly to do everything in a sustainable and ethical way ensuring all processes are transparent, this involves a lot of research and is also much more costly than the traditional fashion model. Only now are consumers showing interest in sustainable practices so it can sometimes be hard to convey the message to really influence people to take note and invest their time and money on an alternative product like ours. We are also very heavily focused on colour and print as we know the positive effects dopamine dressing and colour therapy has, again as some people are used to wearing all black this will take time to influence.

ABF:

What are your fears moving forward?

Joshua:

I don’t have fears moving forward, I look at every situation as a challenge to problem solve. The main challenge is finding and aligning with the right people to support innovation and sustainability. Unfortunately online commerce is ever changing and very competitive and it can be hard to be seen amongst other mainstream brands that pump so much capital into marketing.

 Amy Brogan, Director of ABF

ABF:

What are your hopes?

Joshua:

My hopes is for LOVE HERO to become more visible and for our messaging to speak volumes to our consumers relating to sustainable and transparent fashion design and production. I would love to see more people wearing LOVE HERO this gives me the most joy.

ABF:

For you personally, what has been one narrative that you feel has held you back and one that has propelled you forward?

Joshua:

Very good question. A narrative that has held me back has been that fashion is hard, competitive, requires constant capital, it’s fickle and you need to be in a fashion city to make it.

A narrative that propels me forward is “never give up”. I learnt this though being in sports, it pushes me to prove otherwise. In addition I have a personal drive to become successful doing what I love and am passionate about so this also helps propel me forward and keep me focused.

ABF:

Choose one inspiring narrative you like to live your life by.

Joshua:

An inspiring narrative I like to live by is that vision is a dream of an idea. I am all about the journey, the destination is nice but the journey is what counts most. Also…. never give up!