Earlier this year, husband-and-wife duo Oliver and Bessie Corral quietly debuted their new label Arjé, named after an ancient Greek word philosophers used to describe “the essence of everything.” At first glance, it seemed like an appropriately elegant, minimal collection of luxurious basics like silk blouses and wide-leg pants. But Arjé’s chilled-out vibes contradict its cutting-edge innovation: Not only is the label on the see-now-buy-now schedule, but the Corrals also made the radical decision to cut out samples—meaning everything they design gets produced, with no input from buyers or editors. So they have to truly believe in it—and sell it.
That isn’t so difficult when the clothes are lovely and easy to wear. Put simply, Arjé is comprised of classic pieces in beautiful fabrics with clever design tweaks, like Pre-Fall’s cream-stripe button-down, which is longer in the front so you can twist and knot it. The entire collection (which arrives in stores this week and will be available at Arjé’s first pop-up in Nolita beginning June 12) actually comes in creamy colors; search “shades of white” on Google and you’ll find most of them, from ivory to ecru. For men, there’s an off-white blazer with just a hint of stretch, so it’s comfy and casual enough to actually wear on the beach, and a jean jacket in weightless vanilla leather to sport year-round. Knitwear was a best-selling category for Arjé’s Spring ’17 debut, and both the men’s and women’s pullovers had a loose, airy stitch.
The Corrals were thinking about Italian summers when they designed the collection, and Bessie joked that she wanted the clothes to “feel like you’re naked.” If you’re actually headed to Cinque Terre (or even just the Hamptons), you could ostensibly pack all Arjé and share a suitcase with your husband or boyfriend; the pieces aren’t unisex, but the Corrals said that their customers buy the caftans, blazers, and sweaters from both sections. Another perk of their reimagined production and development paradigm is that they can gather feedback from clients at trunk shows and pop-ups, then actually apply it to their next season. Because it takes four months, not the standard 18, to produce a collection and get it in stores, they’re able to adapt quickly, cut out anything that didn’t work, and give customers more of what they really want—which leads to better sales figures and, we’d guess, a smoother, more confident design process.
