Ksenia Schnaider is made up of talented husband & wife design due Anton & Ksenia. Based in the Ukraine, they’re an innovative denim brand with an approach like no other. Every season in Paris, the Ksenia Schnaider showroom is one that I long to see the most. Their designs are never predictable and I never know what to expect when I’m met with a rail of their new samples. Nothing makes me more excited to see the level of creativity put into a 5 pocket jean or denim jacket, they really push the boundaries!

 Ksenia Schnaider are in a league of their own and are leading the charge bridging the gap between high end fashion & upcycling. Long before it was cool to upcycle denim, they were bringing new life to unwanted jeans. They do this in such a COOL way that sometimes its hard to tell if their garments are made from vintage denim or just off cuts. I love how each piece is unique & never the same, their designs and aesthetic is often imitated by never bettered.

Ksenia Schnaider’s creations have graced the likes of Eva Chen, Jeanette Madsen & Blanca Miro to name but a few. You can call me an admirer, besotted fan, collector or just plain crazy, but I adore this inspiring couple & i cant wait to see them IRL post-Covid.

Name: Ksenia and Anton Schnaider

Occupation: Fashion designers & co-owners of KSENIASCHNAIDER

Location: Kyiv, Ukraine

IG Handle: @kseniaschnaider @kseniaschnaider_mens

Website: kseniaschnaider.com

Who is KSENIA SCHNAIDER?

Anton: I was born and raised in Syberia, but at the age of 24 I moved to Moscow and started working as the Art Director of Design.ru and Yandex.ru. With three of my friends I founded the design studio SILA and worked on many amazing projects (one of the most well known is Readymag). Then I met Ksenia and moved to Kyiv. Together we founded a fashion brand but I never stopped doing my side projects.

Ksenia: For the past 10 years it has been the biggest part of my life. I studied design at University but I never thought that I would need to understand logistics and work as a sales manager, or be involved in social media marketing and finances. Having your own independent brand is really hard but so interesting, you are learning something new everyday. 

Tell us, have you both always been into fashion? And what is your earliest fashion memory?

Anton: My New Year’s costume of Petrushka is my first memory of feeling fashionable. I always loved fashion and enjoyed looking special. I even sewed some garments and bags for myself when I was in school to stand out among my classmates.

Ksenia: I remember when my father bought his first jeans on a business trip to Italy. At that time jeans were rare in our home town. He was wearing them very carefully, always ironing them. I remember how he was happy to have them. I think his happiness at that time really influenced me!

What advice would you give to someone starting out on a similar career path?

Anton: Control your finances and do not listen to any advice. 

Ksenia: Keep doing what you believe in. 

What would you tell your younger self?

Anton: Be more active, stop overthinking and start doing.

Ksenia: I love you!

If you weren’t working as fashion designers what would you be doing?

Anton: Graphic design.

Ksenia: I think I can do anything. 

What is your favourite part of what you do?

Anton: Inventing new. 

Ksenia: Traveling and meeting people. 

Describe your personal style?

Anton: Gipsy on a hip hop and sport vibes.

Ksenia: White shirt + blue jeans.

The last item of clothing you bought?

Anton: T-shirt from local underground brand.

Ksenia: Some items for my daughter. 

I’m Intrigued to know about your own personal denim collections? Tell us more!

Anton: All my denim is not blue - I like black, grey and tie-dye jeans. Most of my jeans are from KSENIASCHNAIDER. I also have some skinny jeans from other brands but I am not allowed to wear them, haha.

Ksenia: I have a huge collection of KSENIASCHNAIDER jeans, shorts and jackets. To be honest I do not have any other denim in my wardrobe, only ours.

What’s your favourite piece in your closet?

Anton: Palladium boots.

Ksenia: I love my blue asymmetrical jeans and re-worked shorts.

Which of your own designs is your favourite to wear?

Anton: High-waisted boxer shorts.

Ksenia: Re-worked shorts.

How would you describe the brand to someone who isn't familiar - and what is the brand's DNA?

Anton: Creative denim for modern people.

Ksenia: A brand that makes sustainability cool.

You use vintage denim in your collections - tell us how do you source this and how does this differ in terms of process / production from other ready to wear garments?

Anton: I often go to second-hand markets to buy jeans for our production, I can recognise good fabric in 1 second without even touching it. My experience in searching and buying vintage denim is more than five years now. 

Ksenia: We source jeans in second-hand markets in Kyiv. Each pair is hand-picked, we do not buy in bulk, we go twice a week to stores and markets and select the right color and quality. Then we wash all jeans and unstitch each pair carefully. It takes around one hour to unstitch one pair of jeans. After this our team cut the pattern and the seamstress does their part. We upcycle around five tons of used jeans a year. 

Where are the Ksenia Schnaider collections produced?

Anton: Mostly in Kyiv, Ukraine. Some items we give to outsourced factories, but they all are located in Ukraine. 

Ksenia: We have our own production based on the left bank of Kyiv.

Ksenia Schnaider is known for its outrageous cuts & cool concepts. Where do you get your inspiration from for your collections?

Anton: I am fascinated with the world around me, it’s like a never ending game of mixing and matching, exploring and feeling life around me. 

Ksenia: I like to notice something strange in everyday life, find beauty in something ugly, I like to explore, I like to travel, I like to listen. I think being very attentive to the world around me gives me inspiration.

How do you manage to work & live together?

Anton: We both have gentle characters, we are easy going people and we never argue too much. And we can laugh at ourselves.

Ksenia: I can't imagine KSENIASCHNAIDER without Anton. He is definitely the best part of the brand. I admire his ideas, his creativity, his kindness. And I enjoy working with him everyday. Of course we argue, but never about design, only about business issues. Our common vision and taste help us to keep the balance.

‘Be more active, stop overthinking and start doing’

Anton

What are the most important things you've learned from your journey so far with the brand?

Anton: I now know how to stay creative in the tough fashion world and how to find balance between business and fantasy.

Ksenia: I had a lot of expensive lessons!

How has the brand been affected by COVID-19? has production been limited or stopped completely? Are you able to keep working?

Anton: Our business stopped for a few months and it was the right time for us to analyze everything and give our brand a second birth. We became wiser because of the world's pandemic crisis. 

Ksenia: We had to reduce our marketing expenses, we had to cut our team, we had to focus on B2C sales instead of B2B. It was a really hard period. But I am proud that we managed to create pre-spring and spring/summer 2021 collections and we are full of new ideas and new hopes.

You were the first brand to create an online showroom pre COVID-19 - How did this come about? Do you think more brands will follow in your footsteps and is this something you'll continue to do?

Anton: I came from IT to fashion and was surprised at how conservative this industry was. I am glad to see that it is quickly changing and becoming more progressive. We should use more technologies in the fashion industry.  

Ksenia: I had a friend, Jutta, who has a physical showroom in the US and one year ago she told me that she was going to launch a digital showroom. Me and my team were one of the first users of the CXN and we gave her a lot of advice and feedback. It is already our fourth or fifth season on this platform and I am happy to see how it is growing and improving. 

‘Sustainability for me is a responsible and respectful attitude towards your environment - your team and your customers, towards your street, your city and country, towards the whole planet’

KSENIA

What does sustainability mean to you and how do you approach this as a brand?

Anton: Being sustainable for me is like observing parking rules or personal hygiene rituals. It is a natural part of my everyday life. 

Ksenia: Sustainability for me is a responsible and respectful attitude towards your environment - your team and your customers, towards your street, your city and country, towards the whole planet.

What can the wider fashion world do to tackle issues of environmental harm and sustainability going forward? What can we do to have a responsible and respectful attitude towards your r?

Anton: It should become normal to wear the same things for years, so that you won't be ashamed to wear last season's sneakers or dress.  Fashion has to slow down.

Ksenia: We should invest more into upcycling and reusing. 

On a personal level, how have you found the last few months? Any takeaways or learnings?

Anton: My life was the same as before. I used to work from home a lot so nothing really changed for me.

Ksenia: I was happy to spend a lot of time at home with my family. I read a lot. I slept a lot. I am grateful for this time. I think we all needed to slow down a bit.

Where is the first place you’d like to fly to when we're able to travel more freely?

Anton: LA

Ksenia: I would like to visit Tokyo again. And the Greek Islands.

You have a free day to do anything, what do you do?

Anton: I will be making music. 

Ksenia: I will spend this day with my daughter.

What is the last text you sent or received?

Anton: I sent the following message «I want to return the snail to you»

Ksenia: My colleague sent me a link to the article about our last collection. 

Who should everyone be following on Instagram right now?

Anton: https://instagram.com/ricardopassaporte?igshid=10f8t1mu0r2rd

Ksenia: @insta_ dzen

Coffee or tea?

Anton: Coffee.

Ksenia: Tea.

Chocolate or crisps?

Anton: Crisps.

Ksenia: Chocolate.

Where is your favourite city?

Anton: Tokyo or London. 

Ksenia: I don't have one.

Most memorable restaurant you’ve ever been to?

Anton: I am the biggest fan of Risotto at Cafe Charlotte in Paris.

Ksenia:  Ostria Restaurant at Hydra beach.

What are your 3 favourite stores? (can be in Kiev / Ukraine or anywhere and anything!)

Anton: Leroy Merlin, any flea market, B&H Photo Video in NY.

Ksenia: I like Gunia showroom, Good Wine and Asthik in my hometown. And of course I like our brand new KSENIASCHNAIDER store here.

If you could buy any building and live there, which would it be?

Anton: I would buy the Pentagram office and have my living space and my studio there.

Ksenia: I would like to have something like a Collage House by S+PS Architects, by the sea.

What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?

Anton: I check my phone.

Ksenia: I look at the clock and decide if I have to get up or if it's too early and I should try to fall asleep again.

Breakfast of champions?

Anton: Oatmeal with nuts and honey.

Ksenia:  Green salat.

Tell us one thing people might not know about you?

Anton: Actually I am a dancer. 

Ksenia: I'm not as serious as I seem to be at first glance.

Since the brand was established in 2011 you have led the way with so many influential denim concepts including demi-denims, denim fur and asymmetric jeans. What is next for Ksenia Schnaider? Any exciting future concepts you can share with us?

Anton: I am working on a less is more concept now. I want to have a small collection full of cool and influential stuff. 

Ksenia: Creating such designs is like magic. And you can never plan or control it, it is the energy of pure creativity. I hope I will be able to reach this energy again in the near future. I am already working in this direction but I can't tell you more!

Name a fellow friend / creative who you think should be interviewed for HOW DID YOU GET HERE?

Anton: Tigran Avetisyan.

Ksenia: Julie Pelipas from Bettter.

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