Published in our Guest of the Week series, this interview with Niyazi Erdoğan tells the story of an inspiring career that stretches from an architecture degree to fashion design.
Niyazi Erdoğan – Guest of the Week – Fashion Designer
Hello, and welcome to Guest of the Week with Fresh Models Magazin. Today we have prepared a wonderful interview for you with the designer.
Thank you so much, Mr Niyazi. You have given us your valuable time and shown us around your showroom.
-Welcome 🙂
-Glad to be here 🙂
I’ll move straight on to our quick-fire interview questions. We know you, and we’d also like to introduce you to our viewers and readers. Could you tell us a little about yourself?
– I’m from Tarsus. I came to Istanbul as a student. I studied architecture at the Faculty of Architecture of Istanbul Technical University. I then worked professionally as an architect for 4 years. Then, in 2003, I reached the final of the Young Fashion Designers Competition, now called KOZA. The dream closest to my heart had always been fashion design, so I wanted to move into this industry; after that I moved into the fashion industry and received job offers. In 2006 I opened my first design office, and in 2009 I began creating men’s collections under my signature label, Niyazi Erdoğan. Ever since then, for 10 years now, I have been working for myself.
After studying at the faculty of architecture and then working as an architect for 4 years, how did that transition unfold? How did your family and friends react? We want everyone to do the work they love, which is why we are curious about this decision-making stage.
-Well, actually it isn’t so very different; when you study architecture, you are also getting a design education. Back in middle school I always used to say it; I had been curious about clothes since childhood. I’ll never forget it: when I was at primary school, on a holiday, you know, you would get new holiday clothes and wear them as a child. I remember making my mother go from shop to shop “for one green T-shirt”, because I had a particular green in mind and we couldn’t find that green. In the end we searched and found it, of course. So I have always been curious about clothes since childhood. I was into sunglasses, for example; I always had this concern for style and so on.
In middle school I always used to say I was going to be a stylist, but at that age you don’t really know much yet. Back then there was a very famous series, “Beauty and the Beast” (“Güzel ve Çirkin”), broadcast as a serial, which depicted the rivalries in the fashion world. Later, in high school, I was very lucky to have a maths teacher who told me: “Your mind works so well, you’ve got a good head, you’re good at maths, but you’re strong on the artistic side too, so why don’t you study architecture?” After that I began researching architecture to see what kind of profession it was. As a school it was my 4th choice, and as a profession my first. I’m so glad I studied architecture; it was a very enjoyable education, I made wonderful friends, and above all, that grounding is very important to me.
From architecture to fashion design
Of course, after working professionally for 4 years, once I had gained my own financial independence, I didn’t leave much room for the “what did your family say” part you asked about, because I had built my own life; I was earning my own money and, to gain my own experiences, I was making my decisions more easily. At the same time, I was preparing for the competition and researching how I could study abroad; I went to Paris. My aim was to come back and study for a four-year bachelor’s degree again on a scholarship, but it coincided with the competition.
I used to think that to practise a profession you absolutely had to go to school for it; I was going to do another 4-year bachelor’s degree, but after the competition everything moved very fast, job offers came in, and suddenly I found myself inside the textile and fashion industry. You could say I became self-taught overnight: I did receive a design-based education at school, but a lot of what I know today I learned in the industry.
I am also one of the designers supported by one of Turkey’s first incubation centres. There we received excellent training on brand building. Even today I am still working to develop myself; that process never ends. My advice to young people, too: yes, the university they study at is one path for them, and they should definitely go to university, but they shouldn’t confine themselves to the department they studied in. I always say this. They can do other things too; they can set sail for other horizons.
Let them follow the dream closest to their hearts!
You’ve shared some truly wonderful messages; I think they will be very helpful and that you will inspire a great many people. You also teach, don’t you?
-Yes, I teach both at universities and at a high school. There is the Bayrampaşa girls’ vocational high school, a Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School, where I teach as a volunteer in the Clothing Production Technologies Department. We got to know them thanks to the Bayrampaşa Businessmen’s Association. This is our 4th year, and we have also staged their fashion shows twice. The end-of-year shows took place with the sponsorship of the Istanbul Exporters’ Association as well as the Bayrampaşa Businessmen’s Association. The way I see it, rather than educating people who already have opportunities in hand or opening horizons for them, giving vision to people who find it hard to access certain things is more valuable to me. There are very, very talented young people; for example, there are some from the first year who still haven’t given up and are carrying on, some preparing for university, some who have got into university and gone. Seeing them makes me happy. Because it is not enough to produce knowledge; you definitely need to share it. Perhaps one day we will be working with one of those young people.
Moving on to our next question: you blend global fashion trends with the characteristics of our culture beautifully. Could you give us a few examples from the brands you have worked with before?
-The Niyazi Erdoğan label has also done many collaborations. With İnci shoes, we did a project in men’s footwear for 4 seasons, 2 years. In fact, I also prepare collections for many of the global brands you know today. I consult for many companies in the industry, for export companies. Esprit, Zara, many brands of the Inditex group; so when you look at it, my work has two legs. Yes, I create my own men’s collections, but at the same time I consult for export companies in Turkey, I set up their teams, and we build teams there together with young people. Then I attend their meetings and explain how they should steer things; in a way, you could say I do the teaching I do at school within companies as well. Together with young people we give direction to the collection; we find answers to brands’ questions such as how do we prepare a collection? Apart from the Niyazi Erdoğan label you see, I have a very busy working life in the industry through brand collaborations. I currently consult for four companies. These are the unseen sides.
And in 2018 you had a women’s collection, didn’t you? You took inspiration from your mother and father. Could you tell us a little about it?
My design philosophy, my real aim, is to draw inspiration from local values and produce work with a global vision. My aim is to introduce things that belong to us with a global vision and to create value. Since the very first day I started, I have made work with values from our own culture.
In our women’s collection, too, we drew inspiration from our own values and tried to create a work with global appeal.
You can watch the video for the rest of this delightful conversation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prdlWJlJQ2E
Personal account: https://www.instagram.com/niyazierdogan/
Brand account: get.mysz.io/redirect.html
Notes for young people from the Niyazi Erdoğan interview
The point the designer stresses most is that the department you study is a starting point and that no one should confine themselves to it. After studying architecture at Istanbul Technical University, he worked as an architect for years before entering the industry through a young fashion designers’ competition. He says that an architecture education is also a design education, and that this grounding serves him well today when preparing collections. For the university’s history, you can see the ITU entry on Wikipedia.
For the part of this conversation published as a video, take a look at our Guest of the Week video article.