To say that the fashion design alumni and husband-and-wife team Je Yong Jung (Je Jung) and Rujira Lawonvisut (Ru) have done well, would be something of an understatement. Who would have thought that an indie Asian label would immediately take off in New York, debuting at New York Fashion Week last year to critical acclaim? Now, the WRKROOM: menswear line is stocked across eight states in the US, and is slowly making its way back home to Asia and Singapore, available for the first time here at Blackmarket. Je Jung lets us in on the label’s origins and philosophies.
How did you guys end up being based in New York?
It was merely two years ago when my wife Ru and I decided to start the brand in New York. Both of us had previously worked for fashion companies in the US such as Urban Outfitters, Theory and Gap. Although we were both holding head of design positions, we were still part of a machine … a big machine. We wanted to do something exciting, create something of our own. Although it was the period of economic crisis around the globe, we decided to look at the other side of the coin. We thought that when everybody is pulling back, more opportunities will end up presenting themselves. Which was why we decided to launch the label WRKROOM: in Brooklyn. After receiving plenty of good responses from New York, Dallas and Seattle, we decided to cross the ocean to expand WRKROOM: to Singapore and Thailand.
What is the fashion scene in NY like as opposed to where you guys are originally from?
NY is a special place for us. It is where we started the business and that’s where we live … well, one third of the time these days due to business developments in other countries. We love watching people at a lazy Sunday brunch. It is the place that inspires us and truly a city that never sleeps. Every time I am back in Korea, I realize that it is a big fashion city—people are very savvy and fashionable. You can see the latest trend anywhere, anytime. Ru is from Thailand, which is also very different from NY or Korea. The city allows individuals to have more freedom to express themselves. This freedom of expression allows them to create their own identities and styles where very unique and different looks can be found. We witness and experience these different perspectives and mix them up to create our own.
What is your design philosophy?
Designing fashion is an evolution rather than a revolution. Fashion is endless, trendy and evolving. We believe that it is about interaction in how people see, think and influence one another. It can also evolve according to the responses we get from the society we live in by way of politics, economy, music or art. Everything is interlinked.
What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned doing business out of NY?
Well, the lessons come from working for large-sized corporations rather than directly from NY. We have learned to have “common sense.” One of my predecessors said, regardless how many degrees you have, the most important thing is having common sense. So when there’re challenges, deal with things in a way that makes sense.
How important is it to make clothes that sell as opposed to making clothes as a conceptual idea?
Whether conceptual or commercial, designing is a lot like cooking— you put simple ingredients into a pot to create a dish. And then you add your own recipe to make it a special creation. For us, that special recipe is the diverse range of people we meet. We’re very much influenced by the people we’ve met and will meet.
Why just menswear?
We started the menswear collection because we saw an opportunity in the NY market place, but that doesn’t mean we won’t have a women’s line in the future. Also personally, I like menswear because I can wear the line.
Where do you think the global fashion scene is heading today?
Global fashion is building a community that transcends style, luxury or commercial viability. If a brand can communicate effectively with their target audience, they can be extremely successful whether big or small, luxury or commercial. It’s all about communicating more effectively in the long run.
What are some of your pet peeves in the industry?
What bugs me is when ugly sells—meaning something that we thought, for sure, for a particular style, could never be sold, but unfortunately or fortunately became star of the season. It’s good when it sells well but at the same time, it’s not good when it comes to deciding whether to continue with the style or otherwise. Usually we’ll end up dropping it.
Where do you plan to take the label to in five years’ time?
Our dream is to build five studios in five different countries: NY, Tokyo, Seoul, Paris and Bangkok. Each studio will handle its own business and have a head person to lead it—think of it as advertising agencies in different locations. Currently we have studios in NY and Bangkok, so we’re getting there.
WRKROOM:’s menswear collection is on sale now at Blackmarket, #02-10 Orchard Central, 181 Orchard Rd., 6634-5201.
