Nuo Chen: reinterpreting the concept of feminine beauty

Nuo Chen earned a Master degree in Footwear Design from the University of the Arts London. For seven years before launching his own brand, Chen broadened his credentials in the UK through study and work, including working as Jimmy Choo’s personal assistant as well as designing footwear and leather goods for labels such as The Row, Christopher Kane and Tory Burch. Jimmy Choo praised him as “My favourite Chinese designer”. In 2015, with the vision to reinterpret the concept of feminine beauty, Chen founded his own brand NUOGIC and entered a new chapter in his career.

Nuo Chen and Jimmy Choo

hen explains, NUOGIC represents a new logic of aesthetics which expresses a minimalist style in women’s footwear. NUOGIC embodies contemporary women who do not conform to the stereotype as slavish, helpless girls or dress up purely to please men. It is an independent, distinctive logic that does not move with the trend.

“The marketplace should be more diversified. It seems that we are following a single standard when appreciating the beauty as there are too few products and styles. I hope to create something more “interesting”  by adding varieties to our judgement of beauty.”

Speaking of inspiration, Chen says he wants to create his own styles and have fun, just like other deconstruction designers. However, different from others, most of the time, he derives inspiration from the production line. “I usually design and make shoes in the factory and I really enjoy thinking and creating in the front line, sometimes even without design drawings. The production line is my favourite place and it is also where most of my inspiration comes from.”

Chen has his own opinions when selecting materials for his shoe designs. "I will select materials based on the styles. For example, I will use cow leather if I want to create a more powerful look, and sheepskin leather is preferred when my focus is the comfort, such as when making pointy-toe flats. There are no hard and fast rules about which material should be used, and the question can only be answered after lots of trail and error.” He talked about his experience of selecting lining materials. “After talking to the suppliers, I realised that there are so many choices for lining materials alone. Different combination and treatments will have different effects. For example, the strength of the leather upper can be affected by many factors such as skills to paste the sheepskin and materials for the lining. The effects of 24-pound cloth are quite different from those of 4-way spandex fabric, which is of lower cost. It is interesting, but suppliers may lack relevant experience and expertise.”

Chen believes that managing an independent brand is different from working as a designer. The latter focuses on the depth that digs into one area, while the former is more about the breadth, ranging from design to marketing, PR and even finance. It is important to consider that how to target customers precisely? How to maintain the quality under mass production? How to communicate with managers of Chinese factories who have a different eye for beauty? How to deal with the conflicts with domestic firms in terms of distribution channels and aesthetic differences, and how to balance between brick-and-mortar stores and online stores? “I treat them as changes conforming to the market rather than challenges.”

In the end, Chen also offers some suggestions for returnee designers. “Launching your own brand is not the only choice. More and more opportunities are available now, for example, many domestic firms are changing their mindsets. First of all, demonstrate both interests and competence, and then go for either depth or breadth. The best path is your own path.”