LONDON — Malone Souliers founder and owner Mary Alice Malone has named two long-standing team members, Coco Fong and Valerio Bava, co-creative directors of the brand.
She said Fong and Bava will build upon Malone Souliers’ “existing, distinctive aesthetic while also expressing their unique joint vision.” The brand makes collections for men and women and has a shop on Mount Street in London.
The brand is known for its craftsmanship, designer runway collaborations, and whimsical collections inspired by Netflix shows such as “Emily in Paris” and “Bridgerton.”
The design duo’s first full collection will be for fall 2023, and launch at the end of July. In September, Malone Souliers plans to hold a London Fashion Week presentation under Fong’s and Bava’s artistic direction.
Fong and Bava are replacing Malone as creative director, and will report to her. Malone will assume the role of founder and chief brand director, and said her focus will span from strategic planning, to creative business growth, to new markets expansion.
“It is a joy to work with Coco and Valerio and, over the past few years of mentoring them, I have seen their incredible talents strengthen and grow,” said Malone.
“They have long been my sounding boards. I am delighted to see them move into this newly created joint role — a promotion they have both truly earned. Together, I feel we can elevate Malone Souliers even further and fulfill our ambitions of becoming world leaders in luxury footwear,” she added.
Fong, 29, was born in Taipei, Taiwan, and moved to London in 2012. She took up drawing and sewing at a young age, and later studied at Central Saint Martins and Cordwainers at London College of Fashion.
She joined Malone Souliers as an intern in 2014 and became a senior designer alongside Bava in 2020.
Bava, 32, was born in Naples, Italy, and hails from a family of skilled embroiderers, seamstresses and shoemakers. He studied at Milan’s Istituto Europeo di Design, specializing in shoes and accessories.
He joined Malone Souliers in 2017 as design assistant, and was promoted to senior designer in 2020.
Malone Souliers said it takes a “zero-waste” approach to production, and is a certified member of the Leather Working Group, a not-for-profit membership organization that aims to create change across the global leather supply chain, and promotes responsible leather production and sourcing.
This story was reported by WWD and originally appeared on WWD.com.
