Today we are properly introducing Kilometre to the world and I felt like I had to tell you a bit more about this crazy project I have been working on for almost five years, one year full time. I wouldn’t even be able to say how it all began, as it seems it has always been going on. As one travel has always lead me to another, an idea to another, everything I love is united in Kilometre : people I have met along my way, art I am enthusiastic about, a certain vision of fashion and emerging areas I have discovered through my journalistic trips.
Born a traveller, I am probably the person with the best sense of direction on the planet and an intuition to sense what will be the next best hotspot, the little unknown beach soon to become a gypset hideout, the abandoned neighbourhood about to be reborn.
And this is what I wanted to convey in Kilometre which is far from being just a fashion brand. As we all get tired of seeing the same looks and products copied over and over again, knowing you could find the same bag in Capri or Oulan Bator, we crave for something more authentic, we search for rarity. Let’s celebrate folklore and tradition together. Long live Turkish slipper!
In the meantime, in this ever changing world, where something fashionable today is uncool the day after, I have always been attracted to things that carry a story, things that last more than a season. We all know the feeling of discovering an old dress in our grandmother’s wardrobe, a treasure forgotten for years, the pleasure of wearing something you never thought of wearing, something that bears memories. Because objects and clothes have great stories to tell.
This is what our shirts are : story tellers. The Pieces Unique shirts are over 150 years old, hemp or linen, hand-embroidered in Mexico, each illustrating a dream place in the world. We brought these old shirts back to life by connecting present and past, history and stories of travel.
Kilometre is made with love from all around the world. Though this project celebrates cultural specificity it knows no boundaries. Celebrating 18 destinations in this first collection, I can think of hundreds of more. There seem to be no shortage of ideas and there are no limits to where Kilometre could take us. We dream of our next shirts, we dream of a book, of new travels, new encounters…. Like an infinite playground for travellers and utopians.
It might become more and more difficult to travel in the future, we will always be able to travel through stories, whether there are told with words, images or clothes. And maybe one day we’ll share our last kilometres together, in “Kilometre retirement homes” built in the most beautiful places on earth, with the best books, music, and food to end this journey through beauty together. Well that’s just a dream and there are no limits to dreaming.
I hope you will be as enthusiastic about this project as I am, a very dear one to my heart, and join our eclectic team on its journey.
Looking forward to knowing you, All the very best, Alexandra Senes.