Amber Valletta, make us a little jealous: what do you see when you look out the window?
Jennifer Wiebking
Editor in the "Life" section of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.
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Valletta
: Oh, it's pretty cool here in LA.
I look at the mountains and there is snow there.
It feels like winter.
Even my dog wears a wool sweater.
You have been a successful model since the nineties. You have now designed a collection for the Karl Lagerfeld brand with handbags, credit card cases and fabric masks. In Germany today, medical masks are needed in many situations. But do they really belong in a typical accessory line by now?
We wanted to offer something that fits.
This fits the bag, as a set!
Pier Paolo Righi, as managing director of Karl Lagerfeld, you can appreciate how important the mask is.
Righi
: The mask is not important in business.
But it's an important symbol that you can look good and do the right thing.
That brings us to the claim of the collection: It should have as little ecological impact as possible. Means?
Righi
: Amber was very familiar with Karl for decades.
A few years ago we thought about bringing out a collection.
Amber was further sustainable than many in the industry, by which I mean us.
At the time we weren't ready, unlike today.
Now it was important for us to dedicate the collection to a product that had personal meaning for Karl: the pillow that he had always carried with him when he was traveling.
Karl Lagerfeld was very sustainable with his pillow: he used it all his life. Amber Valletta, was there some kind of wake-up call for you at some point?
Valletta
: My mother would never have called herself an activist, but she was part of a group that helped prevent nuclear power plants from being built in Oklahoma in the 1980s.
From her I learned how important it is to take care of one another.
The aha moment came later: I had just turned 40 and was wondering what I wanted to do next.
After a time as an actress, I knew I wanted to get back into fashion.
Then I founded Master & Muse, my online store with sustainable products.
I knew I didn't want to make any more stuff.
How far is the industry today?
Valletta
: A few years ago that sounded new to fashion people.
Many people today are wondering: How can you reuse fashion?
How can one give new meaning to what exists?
Is the pandemic contributing to this?
Valletta
: I think so.
When you take a break, your thoughts run free.
We were forced to take a break, and perhaps some of them realized that the air in the cities is better, that nature blossoms or that it is less possible to cope with.
Mr. Righi, how do you behave as a fashion brand?
Righi
: We have been experiencing a change in awareness for twelve months.
Before it was like this: volume, exclusivity, show.
Now it is much more about responsible cooperation: with employees, customers and also with regard to environmental issues.
Sounds almost too good. Will that remain an issue?
Righi
: I think so.
The change, inclusion instead of exclusion, has been on the horizon for some time.
Amber Valletta, how has the pandemic changed your life?
Valletta
: There have always been phases in my life when I've been on the road a lot and other times when I've completely shut my life down.
The past year was like shutting down life to the ten.
I made a list of things I wanted to achieve;
on it were items like this collection or an online course in sustainability goals.
But I am not trying to do something that I am not.
I'm not going to write the next big novel.
How's the mood in LA since the presidential election?
Valletta
: We all feel more hopeful since the elections! Regardless of which political party is in power, it is important that we hold them accountable in order to do what is best for the people and our planet.