A Filipina fashion designer’s success story and tips [video]

Bea Valdes: woman fashion designer from the Philippines

Successful luxury companies are not common in Southeast Asia. This female designer from the Philippines nonetheless proves that it is possible to succeed in the luxury industry. Through her creative approach, traditional crafts from the Philippines now gain international recognition in luxury jewelry and accessories.

The following video by CNN Philippines presents Bea Valdes, an accessories designer from the Philippines. She is interviewed by Angel Jacob on her experiences as a designer and entrepreneur, and shares her story from her artistic beginnings to developing a luxury business with her family and team of crafts women.

The origin of success: talent, work and market fit

Naturally interested and gifted in drawing and design, Bea Valdes has been very creative from childhood. Growing as an adult, she created beautiful and original artworks that soon pushed her to implement her creative touch in luxury objects. So she started designing bags that became a first step towards her now critically acclaimed accessories and jewelry worn by celebrities all around the world.

As she developed her own style and objects, Bea Valdes got inspired by the traditional Philippine crafts of embroidery and beading. By adapting to new techniques and modern designs, she and her team could learn how to renew this centuries-old tradition and transform into a successful luxury accessories company, branded after her own name: Beavaldes.

With a background in industrial design rather than fashion, Bea Valdes focuses on problem solving and imagining the final products to create. Through this approach, she has implemented an organic design process of trials and errors to find the perfect combination of materials, shapes and originality.

Inspiration and production: family, team and environment

In her studies, she had to overcome difficulties and rejection from her non-conformist mindset. She found the strength to overcome difficulties  through her passion for her work and the support from her mother and sister.

So moving forward, Beavaldes has become a family company: she works closely with her mother and her sister who help her ground her creativity into beautiful and successful products that customers will love.

In the development of her company, Bea Valdes has also developed an inspirational workshop where the whole team of beaders and embroiders works together, from creation to manufacturing. This bright, open place make it all come together: creativity, teamwork, materials.

When Bea Valdes launched her business she set herself on a mission to “Bring Philippine embroidery and beading to a global audience”. Now that she has encountered success globally as a luxury manufacturer, she aims at reaching a wider audience in Manila with specific projects for a larger public.

Video by CNN Philippines from January 2016

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