New Brand To Know: Louisa Ballou

Born and raised in South Carolina, Louisa Ballou’s creativity was cultivated from a young age. The Charleston native studied at Central Saint Martins and concentrated on fashion and print design. She honed her craft working at Loewe in Paris and at Vissla, a men’s surfwear brand in California before launching her brand in 2019. The company is based in New York and Charleston, South Carolina. The brand is currently sold on Browns Fashion.

What inspired you to launch your label?

The origins of my interest in anything water/swim related goes back to my coastal upbringing. Surfing and swimming is an important part of my identity, but it wasn’t until I did my surf-inspired graduate collection at Saint Martins that this interest manifested itself in my work. As a lifelong surfer with a Saint Martins background, this unique perspective gave me an opportunity to approach swimwear from a different angle and to offer something new. After presenting my collection ‘Sex Wax’, which featured tropical prints and swimwear layered under full-body mesh looks, I had a lot of interest from people wanting to buy pieces. It was important to me that the brand offered something new and wasn’t just another swimwear label in an already saturated market.

Why fashion? 

I’ve always been drawn to the idea of creating a physical product. I grew up in a family that nurtured my creativity from a young age so I was able to explore different artistic outlets which eventually led to my interest in fashion. Ironically, clothes used to be an endless source of frustration because everything bugged me, so I would alter clothes to make them work for me. 

Moving to London to go to Saint Martins opened my world up in many ways. Coming from a small Southern town, I had an immense appreciation for the diversity and global culture in London and of course, fashion played a huge part.

What is your brand ethos? 

At the heart of Louisa Ballou is the commitment to inspire and empower our customer to feel beautiful and sensuous. We create a distinctive and innovative luxury product.

How would you describe your signature aesthetic? 

When I begin designing a collection, I first choose a color palette, and then I begin painting the prints. While working on the prints, I’m also thinking about the silhouettes and how the print placement will shape the body and work with the fabric to create a fluid drape. The look and the feel of a garment are equally important to me. It’s about more than aesthetic to us- the aesthetic might make someone buy a piece, but the feeling when wearing it is what makes them come back for more. The only thing better than the product is wearing it. Whether it’s Bella Hadid wearing the Sex Wax swimsuit in Mykonos last summer or Jorja Smith wearing the Heatwave dress at home in quarantine last month, we want the pieces to make you feel beautiful and take you to your happy place.

What was your inspiration this season? 

I was inspired by a trip I took to Miami with my business partner. The balmy Miami nights gave me this sense of an alternate reality as if I was living in a video game- fast cars, bright lights, the beach. This led me to research vintage Nintendo landscape graphics which had a similar feel. The combination of the graphic elements with my organic prints created an interesting contrast and it was an opportunity to offer a different kind of print.

Who is your customer? 

We have a diverse global clientele with an elevated sense of style. She wears the clothes with ease and confidence and understands the versatility of the pieces and how they can be styled in different ways. We love engaging with our customer on social media and seeing how she wears the product. 

What are your plans for the label?

Swimwear will always be at the core of Louisa Ballou and we plan to continue to grow this category in addition to our ready to wear offering. The brand sits between swimwear and RTW which is a key differentiator. My business partner, Georgia Davies, and I work very closely with production to develop and optimize the product to fit our customer’s needs. Healthy, measured growth from the inside out is our approach to scaling the company and maintaining a sustainable business model. Longevity is very important to us and we are confident in the brand’s future.