MANDALEY.FR: Camille Andrieux and Éric Fontanini, founders of the HABILE brand
Camille Andrieux and Eric Fontanini, two trained artisans, launched the HABILE clothing line, which restores the workwear to its former glory. It was in their showroom in Saint-Cloud, a suburb of Paris, that Mandaley met this couple, both in life and at work, who want above all to create practical, comfortable, and above all, timeless clothing.
Mandaley: Hello Camille and Éric. We are currently in the showroom of the clothing brand Habile. Is this where the pieces are created?
Camille Andrieux: Absolutely. This space is both a showroom and a workshop. This is where we choose the fabrics, design the models, make the mock-ups and do photo shoots. It’s a workshop, a workspace that allows us to create pieces as well as receive clients.
Mandaley: Have you always been immersed in the world of fashion or did you have different backgrounds before HABILE?
Eric Fontanini: We had different backgrounds, at least for me. I went to hotel school at 16. Camille got her fashion baccalaureate before becoming a stylist, notably at Marc Jacobs and Alexander McQueen. We had diametrically opposed backgrounds, it was our values that brought us together. I always wanted to cook. I started at Guy Savoy and Alain Ducasse in Paris, then I left for the United States, Ibiza, Uruguay, and then returned to the capital in 2012 to work as a chef at the Restaurant du Palais Royal. When I met Camille, about 5 years ago, we decided to start a consulting firm together. Today, alongside HABILE, I continue to create cards, notably for the Merci restaurant in Paris.
Mandaley: How did the concept of the Habile clothing brand come about? Why did you want to bring blue workwear up to date?
Camille Andrieux: When we met, Eric was looking for kitchen aprons that were a little different from what he saw in restaurants. He wanted to create a beautiful garment, but also useful and practical. That's where we got the idea to launch the Habile clothing brand. We really wanted to start a project together, something that strongly represented us.
Eric Fontanini: The idea was to bring together our two worlds, that of the chef and that of the stylist. On the first mood board, we removed the white from the chef jackets and added blue everywhere, photos from the 20s and 30s of workers building New York, old uniforms, overalls... Camille and I share the same values: a love of work, desire, passion, durability, and functionality. We wanted to transcribe all of this into the Habile pieces and create clothes that others don't make. We chose a simple approach: To be discreet while serving values, without following fashion. To create timeless pieces that we would make modern. To work on the details, especially the cut, without changing the shape of the garment.
Camille Andrieux: Exactly. Habile is above all a unisex brand, with adjustable models so that everyone can wear them. We used cotton canvas with natural pigments, replaced the buttons with snaps, and opted for reversible seams. All in a simple, practical spirit.
Mandaley: What is the manufacturing process for HABILE clothing?
Camille Andrieux: We start by establishing a technical file in the showroom, then send the patterns, drawings, and mood boards of inspiration to a factory in Portugal. It is a family factory specializing in finished products, which buys its own material, 100% Portuguese cotton, which dyes and prints it, then cuts and assembles the pieces. We travel back and forth to Portugal to check the pieces and develop the metalwork with them. Unlike others, we do not buy our raw materials in China. We prefer to stay in Europe. This allows us to reduce costs, maintain traceability, and avoid long travel times.
Mandaley: In the near future, do you plan to manufacture your pieces entirely in France?
Camille Andrieux and Eric Fontanini: The problem is that cotton fabrics and jeaners are becoming rare in Paris and the Paris region. France no longer has large industries that produce jeans, overalls, or even shoes, but only companies that locally manufacture briefs or socks. We could have produced our pieces abroad, then made the snap fasteners in France and thus said that our clothes were Made in France, but that's not Habile's philosophy. We preferred to trust people who master quality and know-how, to offer the best possible products and be transparent with consumers.
Mandaley: Why did you decide to present only 5 pieces for this collection? Do you have another collection planned for next season?
Camille Andrieux: It was a strategic question above all. We wanted to make a few typical garments so that the customer would immediately understand who we are. We decided to create strong pieces in terms of image and we started with a number of 5 pieces, because it seemed to us to be the happy medium between too much and not enough. Today, we have accessory pieces (the tool pouch and the bandana) and large pieces (the overalls, the apron, the shirt) to create a total Habile look. These are also pieces that live on their own. We start with a hard core which are our five pieces, which we embellish as we go along, and not according to the seasons. The idea is to add layers, to create a story that is coherent and that allows us to modulate throughout our collection, pieces that will always be found around Habile and that will be lasting.
Mandaley: What does luxury mean to you?
Eric Fontanini: For me, luxury is synonymous with freedom and independence. Luxury is being able to choose. When you don't choose, you suffer.
Camille Andrieux: I see luxury differently. Luxury, in my opinion, is unique pieces made by people with an exceptional gift. Pieces crafted with noble materials and by hand, like in the great French houses.
Mandaley: Let's talk about travel now... When was your last trip? Where was it?
Camille Andrieux: Last summer, in Seoul, South Korea. We spent ten days there, including 4 in a temple lost in the mountains: The ideal place for a digital detox! We learned how to serve tea, pray, meditate, breathe...
Mandaley: What is your favorite place in the world?
Camille Andrieux: In the south of France, in Lourmarin, a small, quiet village where I feel good. I go there almost every year to recharge my batteries and clear my head.
Eric Fontanini: For me, it was in José Ignacio, in the seaside town of Punta del Este in Uruguay, a peninsula that feels like the end of the world. When I lived there, I loved sitting there, with its endless dunes on one side and its expanse of salt water on the other.
Mandaley: Finally, what is your miracle recipe for fighting jet lag?
Camille Andrieux: I drink a lot of water, and I never eat on the plane, especially on the way back.
Eric Fontanini: We try to schedule our meals according to arrival times so as not to be too out of step. You should also not hesitate to stay awake if it is not bedtime.
(see the original article here here )
Mandaley: Hello Camille and Éric. We are currently in the showroom of the clothing brand Habile. Is this where the pieces are created?
Camille Andrieux: Absolutely. This space is both a showroom and a workshop. This is where we choose the fabrics, design the models, make the mock-ups and do photo shoots. It’s a workshop, a workspace that allows us to create pieces as well as receive clients.
Mandaley: Have you always been immersed in the world of fashion or did you have different backgrounds before HABILE?
Eric Fontanini: We had different backgrounds, at least for me. I went to hotel school at 16. Camille got her fashion baccalaureate before becoming a stylist, notably at Marc Jacobs and Alexander McQueen. We had diametrically opposed backgrounds, it was our values that brought us together. I always wanted to cook. I started at Guy Savoy and Alain Ducasse in Paris, then I left for the United States, Ibiza, Uruguay, and then returned to the capital in 2012 to work as a chef at the Restaurant du Palais Royal. When I met Camille, about 5 years ago, we decided to start a consulting firm together. Today, alongside HABILE, I continue to create cards, notably for the Merci restaurant in Paris.
Mandaley: How did the concept of the Habile clothing brand come about? Why did you want to bring blue workwear up to date?
Camille Andrieux: When we met, Eric was looking for kitchen aprons that were a little different from what he saw in restaurants. He wanted to create a beautiful garment, but also useful and practical. That's where we got the idea to launch the Habile clothing brand. We really wanted to start a project together, something that strongly represented us.
Eric Fontanini: The idea was to bring together our two worlds, that of the chef and that of the stylist. On the first mood board, we removed the white from the chef jackets and added blue everywhere, photos from the 20s and 30s of workers building New York, old uniforms, overalls... Camille and I share the same values: a love of work, desire, passion, durability, and functionality. We wanted to transcribe all of this into the Habile pieces and create clothes that others don't make. We chose a simple approach: To be discreet while serving values, without following fashion. To create timeless pieces that we would make modern. To work on the details, especially the cut, without changing the shape of the garment.
Camille Andrieux: Exactly. Habile is above all a unisex brand, with adjustable models so that everyone can wear them. We used cotton canvas with natural pigments, replaced the buttons with snaps, and opted for reversible seams. All in a simple, practical spirit.
Mandaley: What is the manufacturing process for HABILE clothing?
Camille Andrieux: We start by establishing a technical file in the showroom, then send the patterns, drawings, and mood boards of inspiration to a factory in Portugal. It is a family factory specializing in finished products, which buys its own material, 100% Portuguese cotton, which dyes and prints it, then cuts and assembles the pieces. We travel back and forth to Portugal to check the pieces and develop the metalwork with them. Unlike others, we do not buy our raw materials in China. We prefer to stay in Europe. This allows us to reduce costs, maintain traceability, and avoid long travel times.
Mandaley: In the near future, do you plan to manufacture your pieces entirely in France?
Camille Andrieux and Eric Fontanini: The problem is that cotton fabrics and jeaners are becoming rare in Paris and the Paris region. France no longer has large industries that produce jeans, overalls, or even shoes, but only companies that locally manufacture briefs or socks. We could have produced our pieces abroad, then made the snap fasteners in France and thus said that our clothes were Made in France, but that's not Habile's philosophy. We preferred to trust people who master quality and know-how, to offer the best possible products and be transparent with consumers.
Mandaley: Why did you decide to present only 5 pieces for this collection? Do you have another collection planned for next season?
Camille Andrieux: It was a strategic question above all. We wanted to make a few typical garments so that the customer would immediately understand who we are. We decided to create strong pieces in terms of image and we started with a number of 5 pieces, because it seemed to us to be the happy medium between too much and not enough. Today, we have accessory pieces (the tool pouch and the bandana) and large pieces (the overalls, the apron, the shirt) to create a total Habile look. These are also pieces that live on their own. We start with a hard core which are our five pieces, which we embellish as we go along, and not according to the seasons. The idea is to add layers, to create a story that is coherent and that allows us to modulate throughout our collection, pieces that will always be found around Habile and that will be lasting.
Mandaley: What does luxury mean to you?
Eric Fontanini: For me, luxury is synonymous with freedom and independence. Luxury is being able to choose. When you don't choose, you suffer.
Camille Andrieux: I see luxury differently. Luxury, in my opinion, is unique pieces made by people with an exceptional gift. Pieces crafted with noble materials and by hand, like in the great French houses.
Mandaley: Let's talk about travel now... When was your last trip? Where was it?
Camille Andrieux: Last summer, in Seoul, South Korea. We spent ten days there, including 4 in a temple lost in the mountains: The ideal place for a digital detox! We learned how to serve tea, pray, meditate, breathe...
Mandaley: What is your favorite place in the world?
Camille Andrieux: In the south of France, in Lourmarin, a small, quiet village where I feel good. I go there almost every year to recharge my batteries and clear my head.
Eric Fontanini: For me, it was in José Ignacio, in the seaside town of Punta del Este in Uruguay, a peninsula that feels like the end of the world. When I lived there, I loved sitting there, with its endless dunes on one side and its expanse of salt water on the other.
Mandaley: Finally, what is your miracle recipe for fighting jet lag?
Camille Andrieux: I drink a lot of water, and I never eat on the plane, especially on the way back.
Eric Fontanini: We try to schedule our meals according to arrival times so as not to be too out of step. You should also not hesitate to stay awake if it is not bedtime.
(see the original article here here )