INTERVIEWS - NOVEMBER 19

Conversations with Sophie Andreassend

In anticipation of launching her creative studio into the US, we caught up with the talented Sophie Andreassend to chat all things creative.

 

 

Tell me a little about your background?

I grew up in Auckland and was raised by two very creative & entrepreneurial parents who always encouraged me, and still do, to try everything and create anything. They taught me to sketch, paint murals, make resin jewellery, start baking businesses in primary school and basically anything weird and wonderful you can think of. As soon as I finished high school, l left Auckland to go and work in Melbourne where I fumbled my way into the fashion industry. I didn’t get into the fashion course I wanted to do so this kicked me into a “go and learn it for yourself” mode and I spent the next 10 years working (also learning a lot of life lessons) in London, Bali and New York in various creative industries from photography to social media, web development, fashion buying production development- you name it. I’m terrible at sitting still and have tried my hand at so many different things within the fashion and creative world but love where it has lead me to.

 

What lead to you starting your creative agency, Here Today Studio?

My creative agency Here Today Studio was born out of pure passion for creating work that doesn’t just look good but makes you feel something and tells a story. I’m really passionate about bringing integrity and purpose to everything that I do and felt like in the digital space, this shouldn’t be any different. I learnt so much working overseas and really felt that when I returned home in 2018 I wanted to be able to bring what I had learnt back here and use my skills to develop brands and companies here in New Zealand.

 

 

What is one change that you want to see in the creative industry?

Something that really has become really important to me is mental health within the creative industries. It’s always great to be inspired by other’s work but because we live in a digital world where everyone is sharing constantly, I think there’s a lot of pressure to create and share only our best work, that we should only be posting or talking about the things that we make that are amazing. I think creatives already deal with a lot self-criticism, imposter syndrome, high-pressure deadlines as well as a sensitive disposition that creatives already tend to have. This in addition to the social and digital sharing pressure of it all can really take away from the beauty of creating something which enables us to express ourselves just for the sake of it or enjoying the journey of creating things that don’t work which helps us reach to the ideas that do work. I don’t feel that people talk enough about their bad work, or ideas they tried to execute that didn’t make the cut because that’s something that happens to me on a daily basis. I would love to see a change where we create open discussions that discuss our trying-attempts, “failures” (I hate using that word) and rather than letting it be prohibitive to us, we use it all as experiences to grow and relate to others going through the same thing.

 

 

You've just got back from a trip to LA scouting a new location - what inspired you to take your business international?

I have always loved what Los Angeles has to offer in terms of lifestyle as well as in the creative world. It’s a place that’s been on my heart for a long time so making the move to set up an office there in 2020 is really exciting (also madly terrifying). For my clients, the US is such an enormous, exciting market and so Los Angeles felt like the perfect place to base our next studio where we could bridge that gap and introduce New Zealand brands to the States as well as expand as an agency. That and it’s also an easy direct 12-hour flight home and the eternal sunshine is a big, big win.

 

 

How would you describe your personal style?

I’m an old t-shirt and comfy pair of jeans kind of girl. I will admit my vintage t-shirt collection is getting mildly out of hand but I just love thrifting and finding pieces that have a story to them, finding band shirts of my favourite artists and then pairing it with denim or pieces from my Mum’s closet from when she was younger. I love anything comfortable and worn-in because I feel like I can get anything done if I feel comfortable in my own skin.

 

 

What are your go-to favourites from Mi Piaci SS19 collection?

I’m obsessed with mules right now because are so easy to pair with any kind of outfit. I’m loving my Leonie Slingbacks because they go perfectly with jeans and can make a casual outfit a bit more dressier. I wore them out in LA a lot and every time someone would ask me where I got them from I had to break hearts and tell them all the way from NZ.

 

Top tips from LA:

Favourite coffee spot: Pollen.
Favourite restaurant: Bowery Bungalow
Favourite bar: Good Housekeeping, Bandini, Checker Hall
Favourite shopping location: Row Downtown LA, Silverlake Boutiques
Favourite place to find inspo: The Last Bookstore, Getty Museum, on the hiking trails on a solo hike

 

@sophieandreassend  -  heretodaystudio.com