Helena Bajaj Larsen is redefining what it means to be a young entrepreneur. The 25-year-old Norwegian-Indian textile designer was born and raised in Paris, studied in New York City at Parsons School of Design, and was recognized as one of the top U.S. fashion design graduates by the CFDA. In 2017, she was chosen for the Donna Karan Urban Zen fellowship that resulted in spending two months working for Donna in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Today, she works with handloom manufacturers to produce goods for her self-titled fashion brand. Every item is produced by small groups of artisans across the state of Maharashtra, fulfilling Helena’s mission to keep the region’s cottage industries alive. She has no full time employees, no office, no video production experience, and avoids the hype of social media. Still, she’s focused on blurring the lines between art and fashion with video at the forefront. We caught up with Helena to hear more about her brand, her video strategy, and her advice for fellow entrepreneurs.
Tell us about Helena Bajaj Larsen.
I launched the brand in February 2018, shortly after graduating from Parsons School of Design. We specialize in hand-painted textiles and silver jewelry. Our mission is to create an interdisciplinary design studio more than a fashion label. We aim to reach a place where we can consult on projects involving surface design and textural exploration as well as continue to develop our in-house range of products.
Where do you work?
I work out of many places. I don’t have a permanent home in any city. Often a lot of my work is coordinating things: orders, deliveries, virtual quality checks, etc. And all this just happens on WhatsApp, really. For the actual making part — I work out of printing studios in India that I rent for specific weeks at a time.
Who shoots your work?
I shoot the photos. I love photography and believe to some extent that as a designer, I was able to cultivate a certain eye for composing imagery. Doing it myself also ensures I get exactly the result I’m looking for.
How do you use Vimeo Create?
Vimeo Create has been a great tool to help me include videos in my marketing. The technicalities of video making used to hold me back from making more. I dabbled a bit in Adobe’s Premiere Pro CC in college, and while the results were always very exciting, the process was lengthy and strenuous. With Vimeo Create, I can edit my still images together to create a video that’s much more straightforward and just as effective.
What are your video marketing plans?
Showing the process is so important with our products: painting the fabric, turning it into the final product, etc. Showing this through video helps customers understand how complex the fabrication process is and how much attention we attribute to detail.
Why is video important for designers?
Video is great for launching new collections. It helps give a taste of the visuals that can be expected: a strong teaser can really make a difference. Video also gives a taste of an event for people who couldn’t attend, and creates hype for the next event of that type.
Do you have any advice for anyone about to start their own business?
Make sure you’re doing something no one else is doing, and lock down a handful of industry contacts. Get enough positive feedback in your environment around your idea so you can know that it’s worth pursuing. Make sure you know how to make your product from A – Z and identify which suppliers you need – then ensure you have the funds to cushion the business. Having the patience and mental bandwidth for the uncertainties that come with launching your own company is crucial, too.
