Henri Lloyd Presentation (2nd Visit)

Last week I had the opportunity to go back in to the Henri Lloyd design studio and present my Final Major Project to Design Manager Rob Charnley, and the 3 main designers of the company. I began by showing a power point presentation which included information about my influences, and how I had developed these influences into designs suitable for contemporary menswear. I presented my portfolio and sketchbook to the group then and discussed exactly how I had approached my spec sheets and showed them my examples of outfit sheets and discussed how I wanted to set a scene and a mood for each individual outfit. Rob's main piece of feedback was to tell me how my design development and how I translate an idea was done brilliantly. Rob liked how I could take a single shape or line from an image and develop it into a really slick design. He told me that Henri Lloyd were always trying to push the boundaries whilst keeping true to their identity. He said that what his design team struggle with is what I have been able to do at certain points throughout my project, and that was to create an idea that was suited for the company by just looking at something small and quite obscure like a bit of boat decking for instance. Rob liked how I had portrayed my outfit sheets and how I showed off the style and look of my collection. He also commented on one pair of shoes which he really liked, and he commented on them by saying to his design team, "That is how you design a shoe".

The presentation went well and after I had concluded my talk, we all sat round and discussed what I had spoken about. The design team gave me some great feedback about my spec sheets and told me that having the knowledge of producing a spec sheet at graduate level is really refreshing, because usually when a graduate has gone into Henri Lloyd for work experience in the past they have never even seen a spec sheet before.

We discussed a possible work placement at the company and Rob told me to stay in touch with him regarding a placement there. He told me that he would definitely like to get me in to do some work and will now try to evaluate the companies budget and work out how to fit me in to the set-up.

The shoes in discussion:

Design influenced from decking: