Maxfowles Debut Luxury Collection Aims to Elevate L.A. Style
You may not yet be familiar with Max and Parisa Fowles, but with the young and fabulous couple’s soon-to-launch lifestyle brand, MAXFOWLES, you soon will be. The women's Winter 2012 collection, derives influences from New York street chic and the couple’s own European upbringings. It's poised to make waves in L.A.’s style scene.
It’s another gorgeous day in L.A. when I meet the duo at Soho House’s West Hollywood outpost, so we sit on the top floor’s patio and sip lattes while admiring panoramic views of the city and discuss what’s in store for the line. Though not planned, they both don similar outfits: fitted blazers, white button down shirts and slim-cut jeans. Parisa finishes her look with a coat of vivid pink lipstick and Max rounds his off with a pair of chocolate-colored sunglasses. Their succinct style complements each other and translates to the locally made collection, which focuses largely on luxurious fabrics, mostly Italian imports of silk, cashmere, leather and other natural fiber materials coupled with structured architectural cuts and a razor eye on detail. Key ones include quilted leather, which is found on the arms of a jet black leather jacket, makes up the entirety of a fitted black skirt, and runs over the knees of a pair of jeans, as well as carefully selected Italian Lampo zippers.
Max points to French designers like Chloé and Céline as ones he gravitates towards, so don’t expect Lady Gaga-inspired fashion. “People tend to overdo, especially in fashion,” he says. “Rodarte is very over the top.” Rather, MAXFOWLES looks are created with the international city girl in mind: Parisa names socialites like Olivia Palermo as the type of girls MAXFOWLES embodies. “We want our girl to be sexy. We want her to be glamorous, but not in a tacky way,” says Parisa.
Despite a clear sense of style, Parisa never studied fashion. Her doctor and lawyer filled family viewed it as frivolous, so as if to counter her natural passion for it, she went into dentistry, while Max, who previously worked in real estate remembers his appreciation for clothing even as a toddler, when his mother dressed him in stylish outfits from Harrods. “He always loved it,” Parisa laughs, “His sister is more of a bohemian and she hated it, she’s like, ‘You destroyed my childhood!’” After meeting in London, the two embarked on a new path in fashion design before moving to L.A. to pursue the California dream. Parisa sketches while Max uses his eye for detail to perfect pieces. “He can see [when] the stitching isn’t right, the button hole should be higher up. He argues with his tailors,” Parisa says mischievously. But such obsession with perfection is key to their vision. “[We’re] very much driven by what Parisa would love to wear and what I want to see her in,” says Max.
With 2013’s spring collection in the works, plans to delve into menswear and the opening of a boutique next year, Max and Parisa will be keeping busy. Where will the flagship store be, you ask? L.A., of course. “[There are] so many T-shirt and jeans companies,” says Parisa. “L.A. needs this kind of brand.”
MAXFOWLES winter collection will retail in L.A. at Revolve Clothing, Elyse Walker, and Ron Herman. Pieces range from $240 to $2,530.
