Moore Style - Beyond the Binary: How Fashion Designer Shao Yang is Breaking Gender Barriers in Tailoring

Starting point is 00:00:00 What I think I do a little differently is I don't approach clothing as gendered. A custom suit isn't really particularly a man's garment or a woman's garment, right? It is just a piece of garment that you can use. So when you see a lot of my design work, the way I market, the way I conceptualize the styles and the shoots, it's all very fluid. The joy that's coming from within, you can't really fake that, you know? that ultimate joy at the end where they're like, this is who I want the world to see me as for so long that I couldn't communicate it. But now it's here.

Starting point is 00:00:40 You're listening to More Style, a podcast to help you transform your image and transform your influence. Forget everything you knew about suits. Xiao Yang is rewriting the rules one bespoke piece at a time. Stay tuned to this next episode with Xiao Yang. We're going to delve into what it means to have a custom piece made, why it's important, and her new line, Xiao New York. Let's dive in. Thank you for being on the show today. Thank you for having me. So I've known Xiao for a little over 10 years, about.

Starting point is 00:01:13 Yeah, I think over 10 years now. Okay, over 10 years. And I've been so honored and blessed to not only wear her suits, but to work with you in such a really fun space for me. I'm creating and coming to like creating visions and you really do that with just like, I look at you sketch something out really fast and I'm just like blown away how talented you are. So thank you for coming on the show today. And I want to talk about some things obviously about you, but why, why have you chosen, let's talk about like the first business well the tailoring what was your vision with that and why was it so important for

Starting point is 00:02:02 you to create I created the tailoring because well I really was looking something for myself okay selfish reasons right so I always loved tailored clothing I always loved suiting and I worked in the industry for a very long time and being like one of the only women in like a very male dominated scene well this was like what 10 over 15 years ago right so at that time custom suiting was really only for men and even the people working in the industry were also men so being one of the only women working it was very hard for me to translate my love for custom tailoring into my own wardrobe because it wasn't readily available so during that time I really like honed in on my knowledge of tailoring and really learn more about the human anatomy and

Starting point is 00:02:59 how to create garments that really not only flatter your frame but really affirm who you are and like your own personal style yeah um so then I like after like being in there for so long and not being able to find something for myself I started making things for myself um and that kind of caught on with some of my clients they loved what I was wearing and they wanted it for their significant others their mothers like you know and they always ask me where they can get it and I'm like you can't because I made it for myself but I really found that niche was not something that people were going after and I think it's a really important space so I created that out of sheer need but then now I think it's really important that I started it because it has grown

Starting point is 00:03:48 so much and it is one of the brands that people go to because it's fully inclusive it really helps people find their personal style it helps them feel really confident in their own skin and really affirms their daily life their identity so I think it's a really it has become like such an important space for people to feel welcomed and seen and heard so I'm glad I started it and I really look forward to expanding it even further so that it's made more readily available you know like that so so tell me um you're one of the only women that does custom suiting for women and non-gender is that correct um I think in the beginning when I first started I was probably one of a few like there was maybe two or three brands that was kind of doing what I was doing now I think you know

Starting point is 00:04:45 and it's a good thing to see now it has expanded quite a bit and women suiting is readily more available. But what I think I do a little differently is I don't approach clothing as gendered, right? So a custom suit isn't really particularly a man's garment or a woman's garment, right? It is just a piece of garment that you can use to tell your own story. So I think the way I approach it is a little bit differently.

Starting point is 00:05:14 and we have grown past just suiting. Like now we make all tailored clothing. It could be a cave, it could be a dress, it could be a jumpsuit, it could be a corset, it could be whatever you want, right? So I think it's important that we keep having these conversations and keep pushing the boundaries

Starting point is 00:05:29 on what fashion could mean for the individual. I love that you are pushing fashion. So talk to me about like, this is one of your passions. yes this is something that you're really trying to change what are you trying to change in the fashion industry right now I think it's um changing I mean fashion is fashion I mean it's a million dollar industry that's been around forever um and I don't think anything is truly truly new in fashion like everything comes from an inspiration from somewhere else it's recycled goals you know i and it's a it's a very collaborative environment so i don't think

Starting point is 00:06:13 anything is ever truly different and new but i think what i when i started shout and i started what i want to see different is for it to be truly more inclusive right um and to not fully exist on the binary like right now with changes it's you're starting to see it happen but it is still very like are you menswear designer or are you a menswear designer it's never are you just a designer right like there's still it's still very binary and I really wanted to change that a little bit so when you see a lot of my design work the way I market the way I conceptualize the styles and the shoots it's all very fluid and I think that's the future and that's what people I think want to see yeah i've seen that in your last two shows too with not the tailory but shout new york

Starting point is 00:07:08 yeah so talk to me about how this idea came about for you to create this line i think shout new york is a personal project um that is has taken off on its own um and i'm feeling really really grateful for that um but what i wanted to say with shout new york is cone was like my personal essay into what I think tailoring and streetwear can be like combined together. Because if you really think about it, a lot of times people only perceive tailoring as something very formal for special events, for suiting, for corporate wear. And people think streetwear as like your traditional hoodie and sweatpants, like something you wear like very just casually on the street.

Starting point is 00:07:56 But I think in the world that we live in, especially New York City, there's such a fusion of the two in your daily life right so i wanted to create a collection that kind of tells the story of how taylor streetwear would be like and taylor streetwear that doesn't really exist on the binary also so that's kind of just fusing my two passions into one little brand um so i hope to continue telling that story yeah it was so cool to see men and like skirts and and like but it was such a mix of what I think masculine and feminine right but like or non-binary because it's both or it's neither yeah but it was just with the leather and the denim and the mix of fabrics and I mean just the creativity that went behind especially this

Starting point is 00:08:50 last show i was truly blown away and i've been honored guys for four years now to be uh invited to her shows and i remember the first time i was like wait you do fashion week yeah wait which one was that the tailory and this was not the one at the one that was well a couple of them have been a disaster no great great but like behind the scenes it was like an hourly show it was oh yes yes yes yes um but you know fashion right you can't fashion shows are always late you can't control something although the last one was immaculate but I remember and I was like I want to come you're like you want to come and I was like yes and since then I remember that yeah no that was yeah that was a quite a while ago thank god I've been on the roster as she gets bigger

Starting point is 00:09:41 guys, but I'm such a, I'm such a cheerleader and advocate for, for you as a person, for you as your mission and what you're doing, because I really, truly believe in quality over quantity and the perfect fit, the perfect color and style mixed together because that truly, like you said, you get to wear who you are you get to express whatever that looks like for you and it's such a fun and beautiful thing all at once yeah and some people are scared of it because they don't truly know like what their personal style is yet or they have a story to tell but they don't know how to tell it or they don't know if it's going to be received properly or if they're not going to be seen or heard you know so like it so all of this really plays a very important role in how

Starting point is 00:10:42 we we meet with our clients how we set up our spaces and how we really tell the story of our company because it is very important for us to let the individual know that it is really only about them yeah right and how they want to feel and it's our job to help them get there um and it shouldn't be a scary space it should be welcoming and safe and you should be able to come in and feel like absolutely seen and heard no judgment right just just tell us who you are yeah and we'll help you tell that story I've always felt that with you and I've always felt you're like it's okay if you're simple and classic and it's okay if you like I know that you love to push like oh you want to try this yeah well yeah but I think it's not pushing as much it is like

Starting point is 00:11:34 having someone explore the options of what could this could look like and sometimes even with me because I don't have the creative that creative of a vision with creating pieces and so when I see them come on the runway I'm just like oh my god like that looks so great or I would just like I could I could do a little bit of this and a little bit of that and make something that was truly who I was and yeah just I think the ability for someone to see a really cool piece like you said the tailoring with the street wear um is such a interest like it just melds together that's the most fun part for us yeah i think is helping someone discover yeah like how they want to how they want to be conceived you know so and you create such confidence and um talk about like

Starting point is 00:12:24 can you tell me about like a particular story that stands out um for you that maybe like you took someone from here to here that's really that's kind of hard to pinpoint okay because yeah only because and i say this because all of our clients come in with their very own unique story and their own unique challenges right so we work with them each and every one of them and in a special way right because everybody has a different um challenge that they're trying to overcome their own vulnerabilities um and the kind of work that they're looking for us to help them with yeah um but i do but what has been very inspirational for us and makes us feel like we did something amazing at the end of the day is when we really meet a client who comes in

Starting point is 00:13:22 and they have been pushed around their whole life they don't really know where they fit in they are coming in a little scared right a little vulnerable they don't really know what to expect but the moment they walk in they feel absolutely welcomed and they let their guard down and have really vulnerable conversations surrounding their body their identity their size their budgets their lifestyle yeah you know everything that happens we take all that in and then we create you know starting from sketches to looking at fabrics really having this conversation and then you know like 10 weeks later they come in and they try it on and the joy that comes from just in from in inner self right the joy that's coming from within you can't really fake that you know that ultimate

Starting point is 00:14:15 joy at the end where they're like this is who I've been wanting to well this is who I want the world to see me as for so long that i couldn't communicate it but now it's here you didn't know and then you know it's like a collaborative effort now taylor is very collaborative like we you know that's why i always say like we're not really a brand in the sense where we have like our own style right because it is a truly about the individual you know so when someone asked me like what is your house style like i'm like well i don't really have one yeah because everything is it's truly custom yeah to whoever is in front of me right so we don't have like a house style or template or anything that we work with everything we make is completely from scratch because you

Starting point is 00:15:01 can't really be truly custom if you're already working with your own ideas in mind you know because so but yeah so go back to your original question like those little moments is what inspire us to do more of this every single day you know that like sheer joy and confidence that comes when we open the curtains and they walk out and or even just their friends and family that's with them you know like their joy of seeing you know their friend their you know their partner come out and feeling absolutely like themselves is also really good to see well I have a lot of good stories for you I just have all of my especially my mom there's something that she's gone through self-discovery in the last year with finding finally her right colors finding her style

Starting point is 00:15:55 knowing that it's okay to be soft and romantic and more of the shawl and like the softer colors but the suits that you've made for her with all of the things that she's you know put into them and you design and put in she is like a completely transformation of someone that was very and she's an introvert by nature yes and quiet but has gotten to be able to have a voice of her own and she's everyone sees it and everyone compliments her and everyone sees her step into her power yeah because it's something that you created for her i saw that on her ted talk yeah she was glowing yes like so it truly has you know transformed me even my identity and other clients that I brought to you and it continue because I just have such like I know

Starting point is 00:16:49 I know what's to experience and what that looks like yeah can you just give like um if we're talking about the tailoring can you give like maybe just some more of a breakdown of like if someone wanted to come see you um let's just say they were able to book an appointment and you kind know just go through a couple of the steps so that they're maybe maybe they're a little afraid like I don't know like it seems too you know serious or right whatever but like and let them know that it's so much fun guys the process is very simple um you you know you just you book an appointment and we do offer a preview session for people who are like very unsure of how the process works or unsure if this is the right kind of route for them to take so we do offer a preview

Starting point is 00:17:37 where you can meet me you can meet Dylan or someone else from our design team to kind of go over our process how the fittings will go what kind of fabrics you carry certain styles that we have you can even look at some samples that we've made and then when you're fully ready and committed to go then you can book a full design session um so our process always starts with that full design session you come in we have a full bar you know if you're not drinking we have non-alcoholic drinks as well um but you come and you just kind of talk with us you know the first part of the design session is going to be a lot of like talking through your ideas um or the event that you're attending or your own wedding what what is it that you envision so after that we do some

Starting point is 00:18:22 sketches we look at fabrics you know we pick everything from inside out top to bottom like every little details you get to you get to pick everything um yeah so then after you do that we take your body measurements um and also do a little bit of posture analysis because we are really truly making the pattern fit you and not the other way around um so it is quite that's probably i would say like the most uncomfortable intense session is because i'm really taking every inch of your body um but we try to make that as comfortable yeah it's totally comfortable yeah it's not awkward but most people are like oh my god let's get measured i like i want you but you know we it's a very it's a very safe and comfortable space to do that um and after we

Starting point is 00:19:12 do that we depending on your garment we'll do either a muslin fitting which is just a test garment for you to just try it on and see if there's any changes you want to make or how you see the fit like do you see the fit fitting you the way you want we can also change that so that session is really important because you get to really understand yourself a little better too because sometimes you may think you want something very fitted but then when you have it on you're like oh actually I don't like the way this looks I want a little bit boxy or it could be vice versa that you think you want something super oversized but then you have it on you're like wait i think i want something more fitted right so all of these conversations we have with you during that session

Starting point is 00:19:53 and then once we confirm the style the sizing the details then we cut into a real fabric and then you once that's done you come in and try it on and then just from then on it's a series of very small minor kind of alterations to get the perfect fit because sometimes a half an inch here a quarter inch there can take you from like looking okay it's like custom to like immaculate snatched you know yeah exactly snatched um and it's all the little things like some people don't know that right it's all like it comes down to like the hemline that half an inch of break can make or break the outfit and nobody really know that until they have it on and they work with our pattern makers and master tailors and really take a look um the whole process not gonna lie is a long one

Starting point is 00:20:42 it's not it's not instant gratification you don't just get to go in buy something and then be like oh i got the outfit right this is going to be an investment of time because it is going to be at least 10 to 12 weeks um it gets a little easier and fast i mean you know this i get a little easier and faster once we have your pattern and once you know your style what and we know what kind of fabrics you like but for first-time clients it's an investment of time yeah you know but it's also an investment in yourself right because you are coming in and you're exploring you're exploring yourself you're exploring your style your identity like you're working with you know experts to kind of do everything you wanted to do so yeah no I'm glad that you said that because as you've gotten

Starting point is 00:21:28 to know me I mean I've tried different things too and I still will but I'm staying in this space right now of like speaking in front of cameras so I'm not going crazy and loud I do have some pieces but but I feel like I want some you know just to spice it up when I'm not on camera all the time um but I do really um I've noticed like the three suits I just got like zero tailoring yeah not even like it was a one shot okay I got you because we got your pattern down but it took a minute because before when I first got some done I was 10 15 I was 15 pounds heavier and so yeah so it's just like knowing that I'm in this space now for hopefully ever yeah it's easier to do it's easier but I like that you did mention that because yeah the first time you

Starting point is 00:22:16 come to see like people have to understand like it's a process it's fun and exciting but it could take like four months to yeah to to completion especially the first time yeah because I'm also getting to know you right i'm getting to know what you like and how you want to perceive yourself um and once we know that it's you know it gets a lot easier yeah and the thing about custom clothing that you mentioned um that you know you were a little bit heavier before right so with custom because everything is completely made to your body proportions even if you gain a little weight or you lose a little weight the garment will still somewhat fit you i mean you can still kind of wear it just be a little tight or a little loose here you know yeah because the

Starting point is 00:23:02 proportions is made to you you can very easily like with a little bit of alteration salvage that or still wear it um so that is a great investment piece because it will kind of just like live with you and like move with you and grow with you you know so it's like not something like you buy off the rack you buy for one season if you get a little ways no one longer gonna look right because the proportions not there right it's made for like a body that isn't yours so there's also there's in off the rack there's not a lot of inseam no there's no allowance zero and in custom there's at least two and a half inches everywhere oh you know that's a beautiful thing yeah so you can always let it out and also take it in a little but and you get to really create like you said

Starting point is 00:23:51 your own color there's colors that this example for this suit you could not even if I wanted to find something similar in the store there's this color's not on no nowhere you're not finding this off the rack and I'm glad because this me like and that's what it's a unique it's it's um one of a kind yeah so with you know also when you're buying off the rack in fashion you're buying into what's currently trending right so like this year's color is like mocha mousse or something like you're probably going to see mocha mousse everywhere but is mocha mousse the right color for you not probably not right like it's not going to be right for everyone yeah but when you're shopping off the rack you're you're kind of beholden to that you're trying to find something

Starting point is 00:24:34 that works for you within what the fashion industry is saying that currently you should be wearing but that doesn't speak to everybody so that's where like the fashion comes in with the tailory right um now with chow it's like a ready-to-wear brand right so with that with that brand it's a little bit different because what you're buying into is my vision right you're buying into the story that i'm telling but if you love my story then you can come in and buy the pieces somewhere right and then make it your own so there's like two different ways that i am doing fashion i guess yeah tell me a little bit more about that about how someone get a piece from your style collection well we have we're on a second collection now right we just launched

Starting point is 00:25:25 in february which is the show you went to um and you can now buy it um online it's going to still be direct to consumer we're still trying to keep it a little personal right like you could you know i'm sure eventually as any any fashion business grows you'll be able to find a little bit more readily available at like other bigger retailers but right now we're keeping it very direct to consumer so we can still have the conversation with the clients like you bought this beautiful you know big shoulder pink leather jacket like what made you want to buy it like what speaks to you about this jacket right or just get feedback like i love the way it fits or like i wish it came in black or you know we still want to have

Starting point is 00:26:16 a little bit of that personal touch with the consumer because i think that's what makes a difference between a true brand and just like a brand that just want to sell to everybody right right because i'm not going to be for everybody and i know that um that's okay but i but i think yeah i think that's okay and i think that's the beauty in it you're buying into a story and vision that you really resonated with you and really speaks to you and now you want to make it your own tell me a little bit about your story for that last show well it's what it's a little personal one but it's great the brand is personal the brand is personal to me so you're always gonna see little snippets of my upbringing my life my heritage my culture new york city because i was

Starting point is 00:27:06 you know i grew up here yeah the like the grit you're gonna see a lot of that um and also like my love for tailoring right it's always going to be present it's like a part of the dna of the brand also leather denim um really beautiful italian wools like that's never going away um will i do lacy dresses i don't know maybe at some point if that speaks to me but the last show was based on shanghai 1930s right it's one of the periods that i love absolutely the most um in chinese history i read a lot of novels a lot of books on and on that just on that period alone because there's something so dangerous and sexy and rebellious about that era that i absolutely loved so I drew a lot of inspiration from that time and translated into street wear which is

Starting point is 00:28:01 not something you would see in Shanghai because it's like furs and gowns and beads right but I you know there was such a fun collection for me to design because I really love all the glamour and the sexiness of that era but then like I wanted to do it in like the fluidity and the grid of New York City which is like the perfect fusion of what I'm kind of about right so with like the help of like I'll torn our stylist we really came up with a beautiful story within the clothes and then under you know Michael Eland who's a creative directed the whole show like at the house of red pearl and like how the music flows and the models like everything just kind of came to life and it was like one of the best projects I've worked on it was magical yeah I

Starting point is 00:28:51 thought that was magical too for me like just seeing like it really was like a truly what I envisioned the fusion of like 1930 Shanghai and like New York City in 2025 like what would that look like. And that's how I envisioned it. It's the first time that I have saw you so, so excited and happy. Like you've been happy. You're not a miserable person, but I don't mean that or unhappy. I just saw you shine like a diamond. Like this was your moment. And it was such as someone who's known you for so long. I get, I like you, I got emotional because you got emotional and it was just like so beautiful to see your vision come and you're part of like this new era for you yeah so excited I think that was like the launch I know it was like maybe like that

Starting point is 00:29:44 was the third collection I did maybe for a shout New York but for me that was my debut that was like the launch of what the shout brand is really about you know like I hand-picked everybody I wanted to work with um i have an amazing team with me and we really sat there and like curated something that was truly the vision and there was no outside voices there was no outside opinion which is us and we want to tell a story a certain way and we did and that's just the beginning yeah i can't wait so what is next for you right now a lot celeste knows this about me i don't really get a lot of sleep because i'm always on to the next thing well tailoring is you know taking off i mean i want i don't want to say taking off but like tailoring has been a staple right and um we

Starting point is 00:30:37 have a lot of exciting things coming up with the tailoring we're launching ecom for you know because our price point is higher um so we're launching ecom where you can purchase tailoring um our tailoring and suits and jumpsuits for former wear that is at a slightly lower price point because we do want it to be accessible and we want to bring tailoring to the world so we are launching that we're doing bridal fashion week in october so our design team is designing away on that um we're launching wedding gowns so that is also something that's coming up and it'll be custom right because wedding gowns i feel like it's also something that it's very hard to find one that has everything you want right that is going to tell your story

Starting point is 00:31:31 on your big day exactly the way you want so we're we saw a need for that as well because we are having requests from people coming in like can you make me a gown can you make me a cocktail dress can you make me a reception dress so we are going to launch that soon um but other than that we're fucking along other than all of those yeah we're like meeting our clients you know like doing their fittings and like um just you know encouraging people to be who they are who they want to be right who they are um so that's what we're doing for the tailoring for show new york it's our next fashion show is in September. So between now and September, we're obviously designing, we're looking at what the venue is going to be like next, what our theme is, and also trying to get

Starting point is 00:32:20 up the e-com for the past two collections so that now you can actually buy it. So not, you know, just little things, little things in fashion, like, you know, and in the meantime, dressing celebrities for award shows and whatnot so and that's really kind of blown up for you in what the last couple years yeah we have a really great um pr team behind us so yeah we love we love yes shout out to jane and jane atlar yeah we love them um they are they've been very supportive and and i think it's working i think this like partnership is working really well because they really believe in the brand they believe in our aesthetic um and we believe in what they do best too so just having two people that fully trust each other and let them do what

Starting point is 00:33:11 they need to do it goes a really long way so they they've gotten a lot of opportunities for us um we have i'm not gonna say which ones yeah but we have some cover shoots coming up we have some polls that's really cool um will smith for our stuff today i mean you know little things like that i think little small wins and that gets a bigger win huh girl you know what i mean she's trying to be humble but um but they've been really great so and they have big plans for us and really excited to continue working with them and seeing where it goes um but yeah we're just like growing working and doing the damn thing doing doing what we have to do yeah yeah well and I appreciate you

Starting point is 00:33:55 this is her day off guys well I don't know if it's my day off well you know it is supposed to be my day off it's supposed to be but it turned into

Starting point is 00:34:05 a work day I appreciate you being here taking the time of course I would be here anything for you and then taking the time to see a few clients after

Starting point is 00:34:15 yeah make it fast but I just feel I just feel honored to watch your story and to see you grow because you're a badass boss woman. And I'm the same. And it's just like to see other women really succeed in their own

Starting point is 00:34:30 field and expertise. It's just, it's just beautiful to watch. So thank you. I'm just so proud of you from all the things that you keep doing and pushing and, and just really, you know, being striving for the best. So it's very visible. Yeah. Yeah. Well, to me anyway, it's to the world too because you're seeing stuff happen and so i'm excited for you but is there anything that i missed anything that you want to tell the audience something anything and if not it's okay too no i think we i mean no i think we covered a lot okay right good yeah well thanks for coming on the show thank you for having me this was fun yay it's better than last it was virtual last time

Starting point is 00:35:15 it was virtual yeah it's not as fun yeah it's always fun to see people in person and do things in person yeah

Starting point is 00:35:22 so yeah alright well good I can't wait to do you know what's next yeah stay tuned

Starting point is 00:35:28 stay tuned yes alright thank you that's awesome

Moore Style - Beyond the Binary: How Fashion Designer Shao Yang is Breaking Gender Barriers in Tailoring

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