I can remember vividly the first suit I ever bought for my first job in finance. It was a skin-tight black crepe two-piece BeBe suit with an extra wide shawl collar and three-quarter length sleeves. Looking back – not my finest fashion hour. Fast forward 4 years and as an on-air reporter I owned 3 traditional Theory suits and rotated them day after day with a different colored shirt or sweater underneath. Blah… And to this day I still never seem to have the right piece in my closet for a formal lunch or cocktails at a school event on a weeknight. If only brands like M.M. LAFLEUR had been around way back when… Thankfully they are around today! Their dresses are classy, feminine, flattering, and dare I say just the right amount of sexy??? They are the perfect staple piece to combine with a great shoe and fun jewelry for any occasion.
I am a huge fan of brands that are brought to life because of genuine necessity. One of the founders has a long and impressive resume in the design industry, but two of the founders came from backgrounds in finance and consulting. They saw a lack of fashion-forward, affordable clothing (made in the USA) for women on the go who wanted to looked current and also pulled together. And that is how the brand was born. The good news? They will be here in Greenwich later this week at a pop-up shop at Outside the Box on Greenwich Avenue. Details below!
The M.M. LAFLEUR Scarf Video – I love!
Q&A with M.M. LAFLEUR’s Founders Sarah, Miyako, and Narie
What is M.M. LAFLEUR?
M.M. LAFLEUR is a fashion & media company designed with women of purpose in mind.
What is your design background?
Miyako Nakamura, our Designer & Co-Founder, was the Head Designer at Zac Posen for 7 years, followed by stints at Jason Wu and Theory. She really went from designing gowns for the Oscars to designing dresses for women to wear every day. Our other two co-founders are reformed management consultants with no design background, but lots of experience with the limited clothing options available to women looking for classic, always-appropriate dress options.
What types of clothes do you make?
Our collection is anchored by dresses. We love dresses because they’re a complete outfit in one piece. Plus they’re easy – they never come “untucked” and the tops always match the bottoms! Since launching our dresses in early 2013, we’ve added knitwear, belts, and scarves to our collection as well.
Who are your muses and who is your ideal client?
Our muse is Sarah’s mother, after whom she named the company. She worked throughout Sarah’s childhood, somehow managing to balance a growing company with her family life…and to look stylish and perfectly polished the whole time. Our ideal client is a professional woman who understands the importance of good style, but who is about 10x more interesting than whatever she’s wearing. She wants to look pulled together and appropriate, but she also doesn’t want to think too hard about it because she’s got so many more important things on her mind. We want to be the no-brainer brand for her.
Where are your clothes made?
All of our dresses are designed and manufactured in NYC’s garment district, just a few blocks from our office. Manufacturing ethically, in factories where we know the people and have genuine relationships with them, is core to our identity as a brand.
What body type are they designed for?
We like to think that there’s a dress for almost everyone in our collection. Our sizes run from 0-14 although we do have a growing Petites collection as well. We want to help women look and feel their best, so we actually have a program called the ‘Style Edit’ where women are invited to fill out a brief survey, and then our team will pull together a box of personalized looks. We have so much experience with our clothes that just a few data points will allow us to build a great “starter wardrobe” for almost any woman.
Where can people buy your product?
Our website, www.mmlafleur.com, is the best place to find our clothes. We also do limited trunk shows and private or corporate events upon request. And next week, the best place to find our clothes will be at Out of the Box boutique on Greenwich Avenue! We’ll be there from 10am-6pm, May 15-17.
Don’t miss M.M. LAFLEUR when they are in town later this week. I’ve tried many styles from their line and can honestly say they are perfect for work, cocktails, formal lunch events – you name it!
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