How did you discover that fashion is your vocation?
Fashion is one of the most interesting means of communication for me, because it comes to reflect from the personal level, what we want to communicate as people and how this influences a society.
On that side I have a very strong connection with fashion, beyond the physical garment and the superficial, it is as if from Ilse Jara we can leave a statement to influence with our philosophy to our customers and society.
Where did you train as a designer?
I studied Fashion Design in Paraguay, at the American University, and at the same time I studied Marketing and Advertising for two years. I did several trainings in Paraguay, as well as in Buenos Aires at St. Martins, in terms of Technical and Strategic Production. Finally, I did a Master in Fashion Product and Production Management at the Marangoni Institute in Milan.
What were your first experiences as a professional?
It was more at the level of personalized couture, with close friends from family and school. They turned out as I expected at that time in my life, now my aims and objectives differ a lot from my initial mentality.
Before my vision was more closed, in the sense of creativity and the product itself, the demands were also very different from today. I used to concentrate a lot on placing a lace or choosing the right fabric; I had a hard time managing my time. With experience I learned and began to have a broader vision of my objectives at a strategic level rather than an operational one.
Understanding how to use Ilse Jara’s philosophy to other aspects such as technology and lifestyle.
What were the major milestones in your career?
My biggest milestone was being nominated among four designers from all over the world by the largest fashion trends body, the WGSN, as Best emerging brand in London.
What are your plans for the future?
Currently, with the brand is to strengthen roots in Paraguay with the three differentiated lines that are Ilse (ready to wear or casual wear), Ilse Jara (haute couture collections) and Ilse Jara White (custom dresses for brides, debutantes, etc.). In addition, we are forming a team of professionals for each area to optimize the lines.
On the other hand, exploring from our ideology new aspects, which would be architecture and lifestyle for real estate development.
I am director IDI (Research Development and Innovation) of a business group where I accompany each company and work teams, more in the area of strategic marketing, new products and projects. The companies are AZ Inversiones, Sindec S.A., Ganadera Campo Verde and Nodal S.A. (recently inaugurated as a strategic company with emphasis on digital development).
What can you tell us about the opening of your new space?
Our fashion lab, as we call it, is located downtown, it is the place where I started nine years ago and I have been adapting the space to make it ideal for all the production requirements that the brand needs, but not ideal for our customers in terms of location.
In our space in Via Allegra, although we opened as a store with collections made by Ilse and Ilse Jara, we still keep our fashion lab in the center. We are slowly scheduling appointments there on the second floor, probably with projections of moving completely to the area in the medium term.
How do you see the national fashion scene?
I see it booming, with many possibilities to continue expanding. I think that having more young designers, with new visions, is projecting an industry that will evolve by leaps and bounds, as well as raising our standards, which will contribute to all this development.
What challenges must Paraguayan fashion face in order to continue positioning itself internationally?
The challenge of running a systematized and structured fashion company in order to make way for scalability and disruptive growth.
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