We went to see Patrícia Gouveia, founder of Be You, Be Beautiful, a Portuguese clothing brand that launches its third collection for women this year.
The conversation took place at Praia da Cornelia, where the summer campaign for this year was being produced. Nature, the name of the new collection, was based on the production of pieces with meticulously selected patterns and fabrics, with curious proportions and thoughtful cuts, which makes any of the dresses, shirts, shorts, special and ideal for any time. of the day.
With the natural nervousness of someone who is preparing for a new stage and although this is not the first time she has produced a campaign, Patrícia tells us that she always feels like she is starting over, doing something different for the first time. turn. “Life is a learning experience and we should never take anything for granted. It is with humility that I take small steps and that I learn the best way forward, both in my professional and personal life.”
After the locations chosen, the makeup done, the models prepared, the photographer shooting his first click and the filmmaker starting to capture the story of this new collection, one thing is for sure, Patrícia is ready to continue to start over.
1. How did your passion for fashion come about?
It comes from forever. As a child, I already idealized and designed pieces for the dolls and for myself and asked my mother to sew them. But I never considered that it could be my profession, I did it only for pleasure.
2. What are your main inspirations?
I get a lot of inspiration from people and from Nature itself. I love the style that is lived in areas of the world that have beaches and where you can create the perfect fusion between beach and city.
3. How did Be You, Be Beautiful come about and how did you make this brand real?
It started as a hobby after becoming unemployed. I had a blog where I shared texts and some images of trends and I took advantage of some followers to start introducing some pieces of jewelry and accessories I made. From there, and with the encouragement of people close to me, I realized that I could create my business… I had opened a path and I decided to explore it.
4. What is a typical Patricia day like?
I wake up around 8 am and I usually have two types of days. The ones I go to the showroom which opens at 11 am and closes at 7 pm, where I receive customers through a personalized service that characterizes us. In my quieter hours, I take the opportunity to respond to emails, manage online orders, manage communication and the brand's relationship with the market. Then I have the days of going to the atelier to closely monitor the production of the pieces, the search for new suppliers, customers and partners. On the other hand, I always have dinner with my husband and at least once a week I have lunch with my parents. I give great value to the family and I am perfectly aware that it is their love that is behind all this.
5.Why the name Nature for this collection?
Nature came about because I have a huge connection with Nature The pieces were designed to have the movement of waves and clouds, the colors of the sky, the sea, the sunset, fire and the green of the trees.
6. This is the third collection, the first was precisely a year ago and it was a success. How has the growth been and how is it dealing with customer expectations?
The 1st collection was as exciting as this one, it's always a huge expectation, a huge anxiety for everything to go well, but really in the 1st I was much calmer, because there were no terms of comparison. Everything I did would be the basis to always improve and the expectation that is created in the clients and the pressure that I end up putting on myself, becomes heavy, because I don't want to fail and I want to surprise, I want people to like it as much as I do. . I get quite nervous, but I think that all creative processes work much better when there is no expectation, when there is almost total freedom. Pressure can often become our enemy, but we learn to deal with it and dose it.
7. What have been the biggest challenges?
Get the best suppliers, find materials that differentiate us and that are made in Portugal. Achieve a quality/price balance, in order to satisfy our target audience. The most difficult thing is to make our parts available at a price that is competitive for this type of market. Doing a business of this kind, with this type of parts, from the materials, finishes, small number of parts and all related operating costs, costs a lot of money and takes a lot of work and sometimes it is difficult to pass on this information and take off this kind of brands. small from big brands.
8. How do you imagine yourself in 10 years?
Better than now for sure. With a more mature and relaxed view of all this and more focused on the family, which at that time will possibly be more complete.
9. What is your concept of success?
Wake up every day with the energy to start a new day at work. I don't think much about success, in fact, I believe that's the biggest secret to achieving it. There is nothing that makes us more complete and fulfilled than doing our best every day.
10. In one sentence, how would you describe Be You, Be Beautiful, with others.
It's hard to describe BYOU in one sentence. But the essence of the brand is to inspire women to feel beautiful in their skin, comfortable with the perfection of their imperfections.
