“Everyone can be part of the DIESEL brand” ELLE in-depth interview with Glenn Martens, creative director of DIESEL

After the wonderful 2023 spring and summer show, Glenn Martens (hereinafter referred to as GM) told us about the spark between him and DIESEL, as well as his deep understanding of the show and the brand.

ELLE: DIESEL’s latest collection has achieved great success both in terms of fashion professionalism and commercial performance. Can you share with us the highlights behind the success based on this collection?

GM: The biggest highlight is the denim, then the utilitarian workwear, which is also an important part of DIESEL, in addition to a lot of trompe l’oeil prints. Next is the pop icon, an important image element that we are reimagining DIESEL in the 2000s. At the same time, we also hope that through the upgraded handmade series, we can show our determination to complete any challenge.

ELLE: What does the new D Logo of DIESEL mean to you?

GM: Gen Z consumers are re-examining millennial fashion with fresh eyes, so bold monograms will resonate strongly in this nostalgic era.

In my teenage years, the D Logo was very powerful to me, it symbolized freedom, sexiness and inclusion. The letter D itself also reminds us of power and infinite possibilities. It’s great to see the response to the logo so well, and I enjoy seeing people walking down the street wearing the D Logo.

ELLE: You have placed very eye-catching and attractive inflatable dolls on the Autumn/Winter 2022 and Spring/Summer 2023 shows. What was the inspiration for them?

GM: These giant inflatable dolls are much larger than real people, and I hope that through these installations, a spirit of optimism and inclusiveness that cannot be ignored can be conveyed to everyone. I hope they can become undeniable cultural icons that express unique ideas in today’s cultural context.

ELLE: Do you have any memorable or interesting experiences to share with us while working with DIESEL?

GM: Working with DIESEL is subversive, rebellious, fun, and sexy. Everything at DIESEL is about the present moment, and we want to give it our all in the present moment.

ELLE: Denim is one of DIESEL’s signature elements, in your opinion, what makes denim such a successful combination with your designs?

GM: DIESEL has a complete and mature denim design language, so our technical craftsmanship for denim is unrestrained, and we can create a lot of interesting and crazy works. This fusion is about what we do with denim, how we make it, and how consumers wear and disrupt it.

ELLE: DIESEL appeared at Milan Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2023. What are the highlights of this show?

GM: Because DIESEL itself is a very approachable brand, we hoped that the show could be open to the public, and we chose to hold the big show in a large stadium with a capacity of nearly 5,000 people. After the free tickets went live on September 1, they were sold out within 90 minutes. A lot of the audience may have never seen a fashion show before, so we wanted to create a very spectacular and unforgettable scene for them, we created the largest inflatable doll installation ever for the show, and broke the Guinness World Record for it .

ELLE: How do you understand DIESEL’s slogan “for successful living”?

GM: The brand strength of DIESEL is that you can use its products as a bridge to communicate with consumers. DIESEL is fun, sexy and socially responsible at the same time. It represents what young people look like in today’s society. They live their lives to the fullest and stand up for their beliefs and the groups they represent. This passionate and personal spirit is what I think DIESEL conveys. The “for successful living” attitude towards life.

ELLE: We watched the live broadcast of DIESEL’s 2022 autumn/winter Milan fashion show and the Japanese remake show. The huge inflatable dolls on the scene were very eye-catching. At the same time, we also noticed that these inflatable dolls also came to China this year to promote the brand’s pop-up store. , it can be said that DIESEL has paid great attention to the market in the Asia-Pacific region. What are your expectations for the Asian market?

GM: The Asian market is one of the most important and most loyal markets for DIESEL. For example, Japan, DIESEL has been in this market for more than 30 years, and we recently recreated the 2022 autumn and winter series in Tokyo. Other big cities like Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Beijing also have many interesting places, but it has been difficult to travel around in the past two years, so I hope to have the opportunity to visit these places as soon as possible.

ELLE: Can you share with us what new trends are in the DIESEL Spring/Summer 2023 collection?

GM: We are further promoting the design of DIESEL’s main product lines, and we are also exploring how DIESEL can be updated and developed as an iconic denim brand, as a pragmatic brand, as a fashion brand and as an experimental brand. Consumers from all over the world are paying attention to the experimental and pioneering pieces we present on the runway, so we are also working hard to make their prices more acceptable. This is a very interesting and subversive process, and it is also an important starting point for DIESEL to start again. We hope to invite these new consumers to become participants in the brand change, and work with us to create better fashion pieces.