Meet Joanne Swift

We recently connected with Joanne Swift and have shared our conversation below.

Joanne , so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.

Creativity is part of my identity and its something that feeds off my emotions and awareness of life. It is an energy that needs to be constantly stimulated and developed in order to keep on the pulse of the moment and staying relevant. Staying relevant can mean moving to a new country, reinventing your environment or learning new technology or techniques or even immersing yourself in another creative arena.

Over the past 6 months, i have moved permanently to LA. I have immersed myself in a number of new projects that are somewhat in a different creative scope, which has given me not only financial freedom but also new challenges which help to push me to learn and develop in a different creative field. I am very much into learning and investing time in the Metaverse, 3D &AR fashion. Being in this new creative zone helps me to continue to develop, learn and innovate. Prior to Covid, I realized that technology and fashion were going in a new direction, especially wearable tech. Therefore, I established a platform called Fashion Tech LA as a space for information/ development and research into this topic. I have been trying recently to get this project off the ground and up and running in LA. My Accessories and creative design companies are still at the forefront of my creative endeavors, However, Josie Chen Range is only now for exclusive creative orders and Cicero Design LLC has become the main basis for supporting overseas and local brands to enter the US market/ from design and development and representation. As mentioned, diversifying helps to open more avenues of creative innovation and opportunity.

It’s really important as a creative, no matter what age, to always be in search of the next creative movement, to continue to evolve and be able to be on top of your game. Working in the right environment, with experienced people around you, that inspire and give you positive energy, being creative means to to share ideas with each other and put ideas into motion, creativity is intelligence having fun!

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
My name is Joanne Swift and the owner and creative director of Josie Chen range/ Cicero Design LLC, Josie Chen range was initially a line of preciously uniquely accessories based out of Shanghai & LA . I started Josie Chen range back in 2010 in Asia where i trained as a fashion design, and hold degrees in fine arts and textile design. I spend hours teaching myself how to fuse and fix claps to create the Josie Chen collection. The collection quickly sold out and the brand quickly found its feet, the philosophy behind the brand and name was to reflective a Asian Designer who was bridging the market, and the most important factor was that nothing was made in a factory, each style was handmade and designed in house, with a small team of designers. I was really inspiration by the materials that i sourced locally, all of the materials were leftovers of precious stones and limited elements that brands had discarded and for that reason most designs have limited pieces. Being based in the heart of mass production , I was very conscious of the environment I really didn’t want to add to more excess and I was able to remain true to the brand’s defiant, rock – chick attitude Now after many years in Asian, prior to covid I has been inspired and fascinated by the energy and vibrance of Los Angeles and having travelled back and forth, for work, I finally opened up a design agency called Cicero Design LLC in downtown LA, my initial idea was to create a bridge this brand between Shanghai and LA and hope that people will accept my vision and styles. However, i have moved paths since Covid, things changed and challenges and new opportunities happened and I started to move into a different area of design with Josie Chen at the forefront and Cicero Design being an agency to help designers and brands create/sample produce in Asia.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Main 3 qualities to have are a good all round training, eager to learn and adapt, and being able to communicate and put your point across as a creative, we often keep our ideas to ourself, we need to be able to express our ideas and believe in them 100% or they get lost and forgotten and someone else picks them up , never be afraid to show and express your ideas no matter the reaction. Learn all aspects of your trade/ as a designer, you need to know where, how and who , is making it and be present at every stage , being based out of Asia i was very lucky to do that, being at the factory, being at the wash house, being at the cutting, sewing and finishing stage so i really have a full understanding of how its produced and the cost at each stage and being able to realize my ideas throughout the process.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Being able to constantly evolve and I believe that fashion is so much more than trends and brands its now, 3D and AR, fashion technology and the Metaverse, Fashion tech will become part of our norm in the next decade. I want to expand on my new project of Fashion tech LA and i want to work with new and interested creatives and collaborate in the tech world with to help to create their ideas and realizing their ideas in the 3D world, as well as an actual unique items that can be used and add value to the community.
If their are any creatives who have any similar ideas of the future of fashion, I would love to connect and share ideas and collaborate on projects where my knowledge and contacts can be of use and interest in realizing the product. I want to connect with others around the world to form a collective group and bringing LA in the forefront of that would be so amazing.

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