FVM Verified is our designer interview series, the conversations behind the collections we cover. After Story Wear’s New York debut, LOVE REVOLUTION: A Story of Taiwan, we sent founder and creative director Kuan Chen a short set of questions. The answers, in full, are below.
“LOVE REVOLUTION: A Story of Taiwan” centers on Taiwanese culture and craft. What did you most want a New York audience to understand through this collection?
Taiwan is perhaps best known today for its world-leading semiconductor industry, and rightly so. But beyond technology, Taiwan has a rich cultural heritage, extraordinary craftsmanship, and a vibrant creative community that deserve greater recognition on the global stage. Through LOVE REVOLUTION, I wanted New York audiences to see a different side of Taiwan, one expressed through fashion, storytelling, and craftsmanship. The collection celebrates our culture while showcasing the creativity, innovation, and resilience that define Taiwanese design today.
The brand works with local artisans, second-career women, and disability advocacy groups. How does that community shape the design itself, not only the production?
Our makers community shapes the design from the start. Because every pair of recycled jeans is likely to be different, our artisans play a crucial role in determining how garments are deconstructed, cut and patchworked. Their craftsmanship and understanding of the materials influence fabric selection and pattern making. Rather than forcing a design onto the material, we let the material and the makers guide the creative process, resulting in pieces that are both sustainable and uniquely expressive.
This was your New York debut, after Taipei and Tokyo. What changes when you bring circular design to a NYFW audience?
Hopefully, not much. We’ve long viewed New York as a world leader in sustainability, with an industry and audience that understands both the challenges and opportunities facing global fashion. Our experience has been exactly that. What New York offers is a larger stage and a global reach. We were proud to be among the few sustainability-focused brands showing this season, and to demonstrate that Taiwanese creativity, craftsmanship, and circular fashion can stand confidently on the world stage.
What is next for Story Wear after this season?
Our next chapter is about scale. Alongside our ongoing upcycling work, we are investing in fibre-to-fibre recycling through initiatives such as REDEEM™, a recycled cotton fabric developed with Taiwanese technology and textile partners using fibre recovered from discarded denim jeans. We believe the future of circular fashion lies in transforming textile waste back into new raw materials. Cotton recycling remains one of the industry’s biggest technical challenges, and as a denim-focused brand, this is where we intend to make our greatest contribution.
Story Wear is at Story-Wear.world and @StoryWear.fashion on Instagram. Read our show coverage here.
Interview conducted by email. Answers provided by the designer and published verbatim. Images courtesy of Story Wear and L.E.R. Public Relations. Runway photography: George Elder.
