Two housemates who studied BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear decided to start selling accessories online one evening, four years later and after moving onto garments, Somewhere Nowhere was created.
Rex Lo and Elly Cheng started Somewhere Nowhere in 2012, while studying BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear. Image credit: Material Girls Magazine.
Rex Lo and Elly Cheng, the creative minds and founders behind Somewhere Nowhere, have developed their brand into a unisex streetwear brand with an injection of magic, so they say. ‘May the power of rainbows and unicorns be with you’, the ethos behind their designs, has transcended them into a highly sought after underground ‘dreamy world’ fashion house.
How did they meet? How involved in the brand are they? What inspires a collection? LCF News speaks to the pair to find out.
Rex and Elly were housemates when they started working together on the label.
Tell us a little bit about yourselves and how you met?
We both studied BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear at LCF and have been friends since day one of university. Although we were never classmates because of the year difference, we just studied and lived together, with a big group of friends as well.
Were you always into fashion, when did you realise you wanted to be a designer?
Rex: Probably during high school when puberty hit me hard and I had to become more aware of the way I dressed, even when going to collect a takeaway below my house or down the road. I’ve always loved dressing myself, so thought why not become a designer.
Elly: I’ve always loved making stuff. After high school I went on to a training authority for a pattern cutting course, it just blew my mind, I was amazed by how much you one could create or design. I knew I wanted to be a designer from that moment.
Hong Kong to London, what made you want to come and study in Britain?
In Hong Kong, there aren’t many options if you want to pursue a degree in fashion design or art. There are only one or two BA course you can take and they are always towards the industrial end of fashion. Both of us just love art and design, plus knew about UAL’s reputation globally. We really admired the university and wanted to study a course that we’d enjoy.
London: Do you love it or hate it?
Yes and no! London is amazing when you consider all the culture, freedom to create and the atmosphere of the art. There aren’t many other places that can compare against London. However, life can be hard in the city. Paying the rent and bills is difficult everywhere, but more so in London.
Image credit: Somewhere Nowhere for Mi Casa Es Mi Casa.
Who are your favourite brands or designers?
Rex: Raf Simons and Supreme.
Elly: Ryan Lo, Simon Rocha and Christopher Kane.
Somewhere Nowhere: Can you remember the day you decided to start the label, how did it start and what makes it different?
It was just a regular night when we both decided to make some accessories to sell on Etsy. Then it became Somewhere Nowhere. Our sales weren’t great to begin with, eventually we came up with the idea of creating a clothing collection, which at the time was an area we weren’t very familiar with. That’s when Somewhere Nowhere was born!
Image credit: Somewhere Nowhere for Sicky Magazine.
How would you describe the brand style in five words?
I will make you cute.
Your brand is very colourful, lively and fun. Is that also your attitude towards life?
Well, we are actually kind of the opposite in real life. Somewhere Nowhere is sort of a dreamy world we created together. Everything we’ve put into the brand was through our imagination, not life reflection.
How big is your team and how involved are you with each process of the garment?
It’s basically just the two of us to be honest. For the previous seasons, we worked on every process of the garment, production, social media, photo shoot etc. We only recently started handing over the production of the brand to a small studio in China as we’ve grown.
What direction do you want to take the brand, do you have a vision?
We don’t want Somewhere Nowhere to evolve into a mass-produced international brand. We want to keep everything underground for people who are into cute clothing, who may have seen us somewhere.
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