Black History Month- Fashion Edition Part 3

Tag Team back again, check it to wreck it, let’s begin! LOL!  Sorry I love music and old school music is one of my favs.  We are back with another black designer that you should take note of and that is Sergio Hudson.  You may be like WHO? You may not recognize the name, but I’m pretty sure you have seen the pictures.  Please see below..

Uh huh, I bet you recognize that, First Lady Michelle Obama wore Sergio Hudson, to the inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, and it broke the internet.  Later that night VP Kamala Harris wore a long tuxedo style coat designed by Hudson. 

If you’ve been reading the blogs, then you probably know, we like to give some history, a little back story of our designers, so you can get to know them and their journey. Mr. Hudson is from Ridgeway, South Carolina and he is 36 years old. He has said that his mother has attributed to his designs, she was his muse. She always dressed stylishly in high heels and suits. That’s my type of style right there! It wasn’t until college that he actually learned how to sew. It was there he learned everything from pattern making to draping. He was influenced by Gianni Versace, Gianfranco Ferré, Thierry Mugler, and Azzedine Alaïa, they were his “patron saints” and worshipped them. He wanted to be so much like Azzedine Alaïa, that he knew he had to be a master at making his own clothing. He said it was important to him to know how to physically do it. He graduated from college in 2005 and then returned home to South Carolina. 11 years went by, and some people would have given up on their childhood dreams, but no not Sergio. He moved to L.A., in hopes of building his brand’s popularity, and get access to celebrities. In 2013, he competed on and won Bravos’ Styled to Rock competition, which was crazy because he was rejected by the show at first. It was a significant steppingstone for him as a young designer, and with the money he won it helped with creating his first collection.

-“It was good training for what I’m doing now, dressing celebrities,” he says. “It was hard, but it was a great experience.” Hudson said about the show

Then in 2014, he launched his brand.  In 2015 he debuted his spring collection and ever since then his clothing has been worn by JLO, Michelle Obama, Kamala Harris, Blake Lively, and Beyoncé.

On dressing Michelle Obama- “I never realized it was going to be that big of a moment,” he says. “Never, not in a million years.”

SERGIO HUDSON on American Fashion: My mission is to bring the joy of American fashion back. American fashion has become a drag. It’s almost secondary — “If I can’t find something that’s made in Milan or Paris, I guess I will wear something an American designer made.” It wasn’t always like that. I remember growing up, every city had their own shine. In Milan, you had Gianni Versace. You had Gianfranco Ferré. In Paris, you had Karl Lagerfeld. You had Vivienne Westwood in London. In New York, you had Ralph Lauren. We have to make a conscious effort to bring that back. American Vogue is a beacon for the industry. But if American fashion isn’t speaking to anything, what’s the point of that? A lot of great talent here gets overlooked, and we have to carve out a space for that.   

Facts!!!

New York Fashion Week just ended, and of course Sergio’s collection was shown, here are some looks from his latest Spring/Summer 2022 collection. You can definitely see some inspo from the 80’s and 90’s and lots of color. With this collection he also collaborated with one of my favorite shoe brands Malone Souliers, you can check that out and purchase from his website.  Side note, the hats were designed by another black designer Danielle Evans of Monrowe NYC.  Check her out on Black History Edition Part 2 if you missed it.

Sergio Hudson’s pieces can cost you a pret-ty penny.  You can pay as low as $300 for a belt (not that $300 is cheap by any means), as high as $700 for a hat and $1,300 for a blazer.  Along with his ready to wear, he also creates custom made to measure garments, and he offers a home collection that includes silk pajamas and embroidered pillows.  You can purchase from his website, sergiohudson.com, Moda Operandi, Saks, and Neiman Marcus.  Do yourself a favor and check him out!  Until the next one adios!

“When I do interviews, it’s like, ‘black designer Sergio Hudson,’” he said. “It’s like, yes I am that, and I’m proud to be that. But I’m a human, it’s not ‘black human.’ It’s just, ‘human.’ We have to be more inclusive, but we have to start looking at black people in fashion like they’re just people.” - Sergio Hudson