One of Jenden's recent designs

Two days after his very colourful London Fashion Week show, Nathan Jenden, creative director for Diane Von Furstenberg and the designing vision behind his namesake label, sat down with Fashion Business Club members to discuss his career.

Jenden was born in England and studied at Central Saint Martins and the Royal College of Arts. He then spent three years in Paris, working for Galliano and Kenzo. “French people are not the easiest to work with” he said, remembering very hierarchical ateliers and a business which “wasn’t really about fashion”.

Slightly frustrated with France, Jenden moved to New York. After a short stint at Tommy Hilfiger, he joined the Diane Von Furstenberg team. His first show was on September 9^th 2001. 9/11 played a key role in his decision to stay stateside. He suddenly felt he couldn’t leave his team members; some had lost family members in the World Trade Centre. Jenden has been key in remodelling the Diane Von Furstenberg brand, insisting for instance that she should be photographed in a Dior suit rather than couture gowns.

Von Furstenberg had always said she would support his decision to create his own labels and is “somewhat involved” in his company. Having his own brand allows Jenden to tell his own story. Even though he acknowledges that the US market is much bigger than the UK one, he decided to show in London because doing two shows in New York was “too crazy”.

London's FBC

During the Q&A session, Jenden discussed the need to slightly modified clothes and accessories because of the evolution of the market. Diane Von Furstenberg’s introduction of zippers was an answer to the rising number of clients who had surgically enhanced breats and therefore couldn’t just slip on a dress!

The Fashion Business Club was founded by Alison Whelan and Courtney Blackman. The idea was to create “a global business club where fashion professionals can meet, listen, talk, connect, inspire, laugh and support each other”. The club meets six times a year at prestigious venues (this time it was Il Bottaccio in Belgravia) to network and listen to an industry speaker. Past speakers have included Michael Herz, Aquascutum’s head of womenswear and Malika Dalamal, London Editor for Daily Candy.