ELCHE. Since this spring, the Bershka brand has Lil’ Kreets, a collection that mixes the physical and the digital and includes clothing, footwear, accessories, augmented reality and video games. This is a universe that has included the first interactive products in the history of this Inditex brand. And all that world has its origin in the province of Alicante.
The origin of this collection has an answer in the creativity of Clara Moncho Jimenezwho works as the most senior designer of the Chica team at Bershka from Tempe, in Elche Business Park. Also with the support of a team in which they are present Ivan Jaddoushoe designer at Tempe and Jose Joaquin Corbi3D designer in Tempe and Mindden. alicante square He has spoken with them to find out the keys to this innovative proposal in the world of fashion.
This collection, which launched its drop 1 in spring -with more colorful characters- has seen how the second edition launches a new capsule collection of garments, footwear and accessories more oriented to the ‘alien’, but following the essence of the first. In this case, the urban aesthetic continues, but with a darker touch.
Thus, Moncho tells the origin of this original collection for retail (and beyond). “Since I was little I have been creative and generator of ideas, which made the studios always have an artistic tendency”. The day she presented her Master’s Thesis (TFM) in Footwear Design, Several companies showed up to see her at her exhibition and that same day she left with a job. “This first job made me quickly learn the dynamics of the sector, four collections a year, designs drawn from here, but developing samples while traveling in China”, explains the designer.
It was in the Asian country where he connected with Bershka through a supplier and, after a project proposal, he went to work in Tempe. “My way of contributing is clear, I drink a lot from the culture undergroundmusic, street styleof TikTok, high fashion, Twitter…”
Thus, as for Lil’ Kreets, the first time he was considered to make the capsule collection was designing a jewel for a basketball-type sports car, “a crystal rabbit head with an ultra-large smile. That creature suddenly took on a lot of life, we wanted to see it evolve with a body, then with more ‘friends‘, and in the end a story began to tell itself”. In this way, that idea began to evolve and each Lil’ Kreets animal was assigned a shoe, with its own characteristics and color, accessories, a bag in the shape of a rabbit , rings or a bini and clothing joined the collection.
Through a Hong Kong company they managed to make collectible dolls and, in addition, the project saw coherent “animate the kreets in a video game and teaser introducing the new universe. Those video games gave credits for discounts on purchases, there was also talk of NFT, or even sneakers virtual collectibles”, as Moncho exposes. But they “brought down to earth” all those ideas and launched their collection in the top 50 stores of the world (a total of 1,000) and also on-line.
In the first capsule many prototypes were made “until I reached the colorful and fun spirit of the collection and I also carried out the six bags”. Now, in the fall, the second collection is a dual version “darker and more alien in a more futuristic environment. At the fashion level, dystopian narratives are very strong. We have lived some intense years and the post covid has allowed us to imagine the decline and fantasy in equal parts”, according to Moncho.
This team project has also had a directive that has relied on the criteria and proposals of these creators. “I feel grateful and lucky to have my colleagues who follow me so much, teach me and build unique worlds,” according to the designer.
And it is that, in this story, the design of Lil’ Kreets also has the stamp of footwear designer Iván Jaddou. “From the ideas of Clara and the Lil’ Kreet world, the capsule collection was first created with a higher character and premium for Bershka. As it was a success and they wanted to enter fashion, with sneakers, they created the new dropdarker and studying the trends of the street and fashion“, according to Jaddou. The role of José Joaquín Corbí has been to adapt many of these models and designs to 3D for shoe printing. The characteristics of some very original and complex designs have led to the development of a project “fighting hard for the Thus, Corbí’s experience in bringing to reality this footwear that looks to the future helped to make it possible with “its tools, talent and knowledge”, according to Jaddou.
Thus, this 3D designer has captured the idea in two dimensions to later create models, prototypes and final molds. “It has been many hours from the initial idea to the collection drop 2″, according to this 3D pro at Bershka. Corbí has worked in the world of footwear at Stefanie Shoes for Stuart Weitzman and Nine West Group. He started very young in the development of the shoe in the cutting section and followed up with the shoe. Following further training, he now works fully in 3D design where he creates designs with various software.