Tell us about this anniversary capsule you are about to release?
Dan: “Where the runway collection was more history-oriented, looking into some of the key moments in the story, the capsule is more product-oriented. It’s fresh and cute, and features a ball logo and a countdown logo, both of which we really like.”
What do you each count as the most significant moment in Dsquared2’s fashion history?
Dan: “Madonna! She was someone we were super in awe of. We were super fans. So it’s kind of amazing when she comes to you and asks you for something. Then what we ended up doing with her was a lot, and it was kind of like, excessive. She asked for one thing, then, can we do this? Can we do this? Maybe also this? She asked for a lot. But she ended up using all of it, which is pretty unusual. It was a great stamp of approval for us because it’s like the world said: OK, she thinks they’re cool or interesting, so now let’s go check it out.
It was a big door opener. The working with her in person was great, because she knows what she wants.”
Dean: “I remember she said, ‘Stage is stage, and if you’re in the front row, you can see that I’m wearing a leather rodeo shirt. But if you’re in the back, you just see the silhouette, so the silhouette is crucial on stage.’ This led to turning point number two, which is that it gave us the confidence to do our first women’s show. And Naomi agrees to do the show. She comes in the night before and does voice overs: “Come on don’t worry boys I’m coming.” And she runs down the runway with two Hermès shopping bags, throws them to the security guard at the bottom of the stairs, snaps her fingers, and the music changes to Missy Elliot…
Dan: “And we built the plane and had the fans—who were students, not dead front row people—and it was epic casting thanks to her agreeing to do the show. It was like a walk off! Backstage everyone was watching, yeah, t was like a walk-off ball. There was such an energy.”
You can’t do that with digital.
Dean and Dan: “No you can’t!”