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Kiko Kostadinov: The Busy Designer Taking Shanghai by Storm
Kiko Kostadinov is INFJ-A, but he’s not entirely sure what that means. “Someone in Korea asked me [what my MTBI was] recently, and I had no idea about it before that,” he chuckles. “I know it has something to do with being a positive influence to the world, and I would love to learn more about it, but I’m too busy with my design work!”
And of all the hats Kostadinov wears, the one of a busy designer is indeed the most prominent. He’s in Shanghai to host a pop-up with ASICS for the launch of the latest co-created footwear silhouette in their Novalis line — the GEL-STYRAX, a boldly-branded love child of a running shoe and a mule — and its accompanying apparel, smack-dab in the middle of Shanghai Fashion Week. ASICS’ Shanghai flagship is decked out for the occasion with a playground-inspired buildout that displays the latest effort from the brand’s fruitful partnership with Kostadinov’s Kiko Kostadinov Studio.
During the event, Kostadinov took a moment to discuss his design process, how he channels his creativity through other outlets like OTTO 958, and more.
Hi Kiko. Great to see you in Shanghai.
Over your years in fashion, you’ve gained so much attention and evolved so much as a designer. How would you say your approach to design has grown and changed during your career?
Hi Hypebeast, my honor to be here. Everything’s happened so quickly in my career, so it doesn’t feel like it’s been a long time — and honestly, I haven’t had a chance to step back and review my work. Because of that, I’m constantly surprising myself, and I always try to keep a fresh-out-of-school mentality so I can learn new things. I’m just excited to keep doing what I’ve been doing and spend as much time in the studio with my team as possible.
I don’t see myself as a creative director, more so as a designer who wants to be hands-on with every part of the process. We’re still very niche, and the amount of stores we sell to is small. There’s no big plan for expansion, and we’d rather spend our time designing than working on business. But, as we all know, that’s hard to do when you have your own brand.
Finding the Right Collaborative Partner
What’s it like finding the right collaborative partner who shares your vision when you’re so keenly involved in every aspect of the design process?
A lot of people want to spend more time discussing a project than actually working on it, whereas I’d rather just touch, feel and try. More manual stuff, and fewer rounds of back-and-forth emailing and Zoom meetings. When our partners understand that, the results are amazing because the hard part — finding the right partner — has already been taken care of.
Take ASICS for example: over the last six years, they’ve always let me do what I feel is correct, and that kind of freedom is very important for me if I’m to do my job correctly.
