How to create a cult fashion brand

Launching a jewellery brand was never part of the plan for Suhani Parekh. Let alone one that would eventually end up being endorsed by international fashion fixtures and the Bollywood elite. The art history and sculpture graduate from Goldsmiths, University of London, was working with acclaimed Indian architect Ashiesh Shah in Mumbai when Misho happened. ‘I was experimenting with silver at the time. Slowly, my pieces began to look better on the body than on the plinth,’ reveals Parekh. ‘I started approaching them as pieces of sculpture to give the body a new dimension.’

But Parekh was creating this wearable art only for herself. She started sporting her designs to parties and that’s when interest started pouring in. Soon enough, her simplified use of geometric shapes and clean lines with an architectural twist were grabbing attention. Vogue India and Architectural Digest India previewed Misho before its official launch in January 2016. Acclaim from Elle UK, Wallpaper*, The Sunday Times Style and Vogue USA, among others, followed soon after. 

Bollywood’s stamp of approval was not far behind either. Actress and fashion icon Sonam Kapoor Ahuja was the first celebrity to wear Misho. Ever since, style savants the world over have been generous in their patronage – Kim Kardashian West owns the drop hoops while sister Kendall Jenner wears her many Misho earrings often. Rihanna also wore a pair in the cover spread of Vogue Arabia and Deepika Padukone sported Misho at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.  

Safe to say, Misho has garnered a cult following in the short time since its birth. What makes it so, according to Parekh? ‘The beauty of a cult brand is that it’s recognisable. People still come up to me and say they can tell my pieces apart, and therein lies our victory.’ 

Here, the forward-thinking designer shares her secrets and the all-important lessons she has learnt along the way to creating her cult fashion brand.

1. Invest in a design language 

‘Integrity in design is key. Misho is minimal yet statement and sculptural. Everything is hand-made using gold-plated sterling silver. That signature hasn’t changed even as we have evolved. We started with earrings, body pieces, ear cuffs and rings, and launched sunglasses only after meticulous honing of our craft – it’s best to stick with the product line you launch with and grow slowly.’

2. Keep it personal 

‘If you compliment anyone on their jewellery, they will reach out and touch it. That’s because jewellery is incredibly personal and I never forget that. I primarily design for myself. So, for every new collection, I identify a style I’m excited to wear or a classic I want to reinvent. Our signature hoops are contemporary reinterpretations of the classic piece that I couldn’t find in the market. Our popular zodiac pendants came about because I wanted to design talismans you can wear for years to come, but also ones that say something about you. I’ve found that the pieces I like best are also the ones people reach out for most often.’ 

3. Focus on your local market

‘Your home market is a litmus test of how your pieces will be received everywhere else in the world. That’s your real make-or-break moment as a young brand.’ 

4. Build relationships within the industry 

‘We won the Grazia Young Fashion Award and Elle Graduates Award, both for accessory design, in the year we launched. Then came the Vogue Paris Design Award for the 15 best earrings of 2017 and Harper's Bazaar's Jewellery Designer of the Year Award in 2019. I was also on the Forbes India 30 Under 30 list in the fashion category last year. This support from the industry has been instrumental in our success.  

‘My advice is to get the word out there about your work. Keep stylists and editors updated on your new collections. Send out pieces when you get sourcing requests. Build this momentum organically and the recognition will follow.’ 

5. Design for your audience, not for a particular stockist 

‘Internationally, we are now available at Selfridges, Luisa Via Roma, Fenwick, Farfetch and Matches. The thing is, you need an established design language before you approach retailers. They will look at everything – your past collections, your evolution, your press. It’s important to do your homework and see if you fit their aesthetic. Then identify a gap and bring something unique to their edit rather than designing more of what they already have.’  

6. Social media is a force to reckon with 

‘Luisa Via Roma discovered us through Instagram as did Sonam Kapoor Ahuja’s team. When we launched, it was where most of our orders came from. 

‘For us, social media is not just great to find collaborators but to engage with our audience, too. They speak the same language as us. They are interested in the same things – food, culture, art, architecture. So our feed becomes an authentic window into our aesthetic without always being sales-driven. Since I travel a lot, we recently launched our 24 hrs series on Instagram Stories, starting with my unbiased picks from a recent work trip to Berlin.’  

Shop Misho’s designs here.