How Bach Mai Made His Haute Couture Dreams Come True
Photo: Duke Winn/Courtesy of Bach Mai
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Watch the full conversation between Bach Mai and Deputy Editor Ana Colón on The Fashionista Network.
To be an opera singer or not to be an opera singer — that's the question that Bach Mai asked himself, deciding whether to pursue music or fashion in college. Obviously, he went with the latter (not to say there won't be a surprise opera performance at one of his presentations in the future), his love for design always having been a big part of his life.
Mai began his professional pursuits early, leveraging his high school's build-your-own-curriculum course to study fashion history. He was most fascinated by haute couture, initially sparked by John Galliano's Dior Haute Couture Spring 2004 show. "I just remember watching it over and over again and just being like, 'What is this?' It was wild, and it was just so fantastic," he told Ana Colón live on The Fashionista Network. (Watch it here!)
Mai went to Parsons The New School, with a goal of "learning about creation and creativity in a multi-faceted way." (He explained further how that shaped his process in the full interview, which you can watch here.) To further perfect his craft, he traveled to Paris to obtain his MA and, eventually, land his dream job of working at Maison Margiela under John Galliano.
"John talks often about how in his world, fashion exists as a pyramid, and couture is at the top," Mai said. "It's a laboratory for design."
Eventually, Mai moved back to the U.S. to launch his eponymous label, which infuses couture-inspired elements into American ready-to-wear. It gained recognition rapidly after its Fall 2021 debut, landing its first celebrity placement shortly after. To date, Bach Mai's been worn by celebrities such as Liza Koshy, Venus Williams, Heidi Klum, Lucy Liu, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Tessa Thompson.
Mai left the audience with his best piece of advice, summarized by a Tom Ford quote: "If there's anything else you can imagine doing and being happy, do that instead. But if you can't, then do fashion."
This conversation was hosted on The Fashionista Network powered by interactive media platform Fireside, where viewers get the chance to participate and speak directly with industry figures. Learn more about The Fashionista Network here.
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