With 10 years under his belt, Jeffrey wants to take his paean to queer creativity into the next decade with assertions of the brand’s hallmarks. There are twists on classic English tailoring with outsize jackets and slouchy trousers. Knitwear is deconstructed and woven in psychedelic hues. Crocheted mallard-shaped bags and fluffy earmuffs offer a charming tongue-in-cheek sensibility and serious commercial intentions. There are pervasive references to uniforms and the institutions they represent – think military-inspired dresses and school skirts. In terms of displaying the collection, Jeffrey collaborated with the collective BULLYACHE, who choreographed a performance for the occasion that overlaid rising right-wing rhetoric and populist opinion. Against the backdrop of the current political tensions in the United States and Europe, Loverboy’s edginess provided a counterintuitive rave of color and attitude.
“I want this collection to be like the ugly twin to the one we showed last year, which was elegant and celebratory [for] our 10 years in fashion. This one is a bit dirty and underground,” said Jeffrey, ahead of his Paris debut, over a video call from his London studio.
What would you like us to know about this collection?
For the last couple of seasons, I created a short story and compiled my research almost like a script for a movie. My team and I started designing almost like costume designers. This time, I didn’t really want to do anything other than draw which felt really instinctive.
I found two books: one about punk photographers; one about Irish Catholic school girls. The two ideas didn’t really go together. It was less about trying to fit [the imagery] into a narrative [within the collection]. They were really just desirable pictures. They have very distinct attitudes.
What was the thought process behind your collaborators this season?
Dover Street Market Paris offered us a place to show in Paris. They have been such a huge support to me over the last 10 years and they continue to offer us an opportunity to express ourselves. It’s a great place for us to start our genesis in Paris. They were our first ever stockists; what better place to do my first-ever presentation [on the official schedule] in the space that supported me at the beginning of my brand. It’s also an opportunity to bring all my collaborators together [and showcase] the arcs of my brand DNA like performance, music, and dance.
We have PornHub as a presenting partner and they have supported us with some resources to be able to present in Paris. We’ve collaborated with them on some jersey pieces too. I wanted to tell a story that isn’t so much about adult entertainment but adult expression – the idea of people reclaiming their own bodies, taking away from the male gaze. The show itself speaks to a lot of political movements that are happening right now, like how queer bodies and women’s bodies are in potential jeopardy. We’ve also worked with some adult entertainers to elevate and empower adult content creators in the space.
With 10 years under your belt, how would you like to approach the next decade?
Brands might not speak to this, but I think a lot about the business and our customers when we design. It’s fun to delve into these big narratives, but I want to be here for 50 years; so there’s a slow and steady approach, listening, reacting, and expanding products that we’re working on.
When you think about brands that have lasted for a long time, you think about products straight away. If you think about Paul Smith, you think about suits and stripes. If you think about Hermès, you think about Birkins and silk scarves. We’re at the beginning of pushing an agenda that is Loverboy tartan and bright knitwear. We’re delving into a granular space too: the Loverboy beanie; knitted bags; the Loverboy logo jumper; tartan suits in two cuts: Edinburgh and Glasgow. We’re at the stage where we’re having to tell people who we are and that comes with some showboating. There’s still experimentation from a marketing point of view, but the product is staying quite consistent.
This interview has been condensed lightly edited.
