Meet Marky Duong - fashion designer and Founder of our brand partner, Marky Atelier. Marky Atelier’s beautiful and unique designs have been featured in Harpers Bazaar Vietnam, Elle Vietnam, and The Morning Herald with leading designer Alex Perry. He describes his fashion philosophy as youthful, rebellious and gender neutral, and wants to empower all people to express their individual style and be their most confident selves. Marky’s gentle nature, creative intellect, and ambition match the quality of his fabric and designs. Read on to learn about (and become inspired by) his journey.

How did you develop your interest in fashion? What inspired you to pursue a career in Fashion Design?

My mother is the one who inspired me and lead me to the fashion world. When I was in Year 6, I remember, I had no taste of fashion. I could put everything on, and that was a piece of sand in her eyes - she could not accept her son dressing so bad, so she took me to her boutique when we were free.

There, I had a chance to observe what people wore and what was on-trend back then . Slowly, I fell in love with fashion.

You are inspired by your mother's style and fashion icons from all times. What is it that you love most about her style, and her?

My mother is a big fan of bandage dress and corset . But what really inspired me is her ego and willing to try spirit. She would step out of her comfort zone and experiment what is news on fashion. It could be new silhouttle , new color or new fabric. You can meet her on the street with a very feminine floral dress and walk in a restaurant in a read corset mini dress for dinner.

Which fashion icons / times inspire you the most?

My fashion icon is only Lady Gaga .

Marky Atelier has evolved over time. Please talk us through where you started, and where you are now. What inspired this evolution?

My very first label was Reflection, a unisex streetwear label back on 2013. It wasnt sucessful because the market wasnt ready for unisex back there. I decided to quit my barista job to work for a start up fashion house in Neutral Bay. I took the jobs of designer, sale, production manager but they didnt pay me any money for 6months and stole my collections. I were in a big depression but luckily my family supported me and i got back to my barista job for while to maintain the balance .

During that time, I still took job in fashion as stylist to keep my fashion passion going . One time I used my saving to create 5 pieces collection "The romantic Venom" and one of the dress caught the eye of a client who contacted me to buy the dress and also the next whole collection " La Vie En Rose". Because of this elite client, I gained back my confident and finance so I created " Marky Atelier" which means “Marky cannot live without fashion and fashion never leave Marky”

What is it that you love most about your job?

I love fashion because it give me the chance to connect to many types of people that I would not expect to meet in my life.

Can you name your greatest success, or something you are most proud of in your career? What have been the highlights so far?

" Love is Love" is the collection that bring to me a lot of success. It has been in Elle Vietnam (2018), worn by Miss International Queen 2018- Nguyen Huong Giang.... in Harper Bazzar Vietnam - Valentine 2021 Issue Print- worn by Lily Maymac.

I also was interviewed as one of the 10 start-up influencer by SBS Vietnamese.

Marky Atelier is the Finalist for Local Business Award 2020 and Myself is the Finalist for Outstanding Business Person of The Year

What is the best advice you have ever received?

Actually, I did not received any advice from anyone

What advice would you give to women wanting to enter the world of fashion design?

Not only to women but to everyone who want to enter the world of fashion: This is a long journey and everyone has their own frameline of success. Never compare yourself to others but never stop moving forward.

A fashion designer is not only an artist, but also needs a business mind to drive the brand. We design clothes for customer so we have to listen to what they need not only ourself.

What does 'beauty' mean to you?

Beauty means the positive vibe, the action, the way of communication.

What does confidence mean to you?

Confidence means we dress to make ourself happy and fall in love with our body. We do not need to follow any rule of body shape. Just like the Victoria Secret Show, " Dress to impress" is out of fashion and doesn’t suit to today statement.

To view more of Marky Atelier’s beautiful and unique designs, visit his website www.markyatelier.com.

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