"I'm a designer, things keep evolving for me, and such evolution is necessary in the world."
-Raf Simons
Boy from a happy home
Raf Simons was born in 1968 in Neerpelt, a small provincial town in Belgium. His father was a night guard in the military, his mother was a house cleaner. The designer remembers his family home as very warm and loving. When asked if he was afraid to take on the challenge before starting work as a creative director at Dior, he said that he had been raised in a very happy environment by very happy people and this should be enough to achieve success at Dior.
The small town environment did not offer Simons many opportunities for development, especially in creative pursuits. That's why as a young boy he spent a lot of time in vinyl stores, and his main hobby was music. Music still plays a significant role in his performance fashion shows. The young, quiet, and withdrawn Raf liked to dress in black and listen to the underground music of Kraftwerk and Joy Division. Shortly before finishing school and entering adulthood, a book on interior design came into his hands. As the designer himself admits, this was the moment that influenced the choice of his life path.
School of design and furniture design
By the end of the 80s, the fashion market in Belgium was beginning to develop dynamically. At just 19, Simons felt that this could be the industry where he could find fulfillment. His parents never pressured him about his career choice. They only encouraged him to take a serious approach to his profession, whatever it might be. In 1989, while still studying, Raf went to work in Walter Van Beirendonck's studio. Although he had no experience related to fashion, he intrigued Beirendonck, who decided to take him on as an intern. It was there that Simons experienced his initiation with Martin Margiela's fashion show and experienced a real catharsis. "After the show I thought: this is what I'm going to do. This show is the reason why I became a designer." Despite the slowly emerging feeling for fashion, Raf, remembering his father's teachings, decided to finish his studies. After graduation in 1991, he continued to work in furniture design companies for another 4 years.
Turn towards fashion
At the age of 27, Simons decided to revolutionize and fully devote himself to clothing design. He was a complete self-taught person who created his first men's clothing line under his own name in 1995. Although in 2000 he took a longer break from designing, he resumed production after a year. During his break, he started working as the head of the fashion department at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna. The real breakthrough came in 2005, when he released his first collection under the brand Raf by Raf Simons, and a few months later he was appointed as the creative director of Jil Sander's women's and men's collections. Simons didn't hesitate too long to accept Sander's offer, knowing that what the brand represents is fully consistent with his vision of fashion. Simons' first collection for Jil Sander was presented in autumn 2006. The next change came in 2012, when he was offered the position of creative director at the fashion house Dior, replacing Bill Gaytten. Simons brought a new, fresh look to contemporary fashion to the brand, helping it enter the era of minimalistic modernism, while still maintaining the elegance and class of Dior's collections.
After just 3 years, Simons left the French fashion house to fully dedicate himself to his own brand - Raf by Raf Simons. However, in the autumn of 2016, he joined the team of the American brand Calvin Klein, where he works to this day.
Raf Simons' style
The introverted and modest Raf Simons draws inspiration from everything that surrounds him. He seeks creative muse in rebellious youth culture and modernist minimalism. His style adapts to the brands he is invited to work with. His collections always surprise, as it's hard to find a leading motif in them, although his inimitable style is noticeable in every element of the wardrobe. This is the enigma of the fashion world. On one hand, working with sports brands like Adidas, Simons was responsible for refreshing the look of iconic Adidas Stan Smith models. On the other hand, he designed a stunning, romantic Dior dress in which Jennifer Lawrence received the award for best actress in 2013. And how does he define his style himself? "Rock and roll doesn't really suit me. I define myself more as techno."
