IIBN - International Irish Business Network

IIBN New York was delighted to host Paul Costelloe, Irish fashion designer and entrepreneur, as a keynote speaker on Thursday, 20th May in NY.  Paul gave an exceptional and detailed talk whilst models showcased newest collections.  

Paul’s presentation took three strands and focused on the past, the present and the future.

The Past

With his emphasis on natural fabrics, superior tailoring and wearable designs, Paul Costelloe takes immense pride in being one of Britain and Ireland’s most reputable designers who has lovingly grown his fashion empire over the last 30 years. Having realised at school in Dublin that ‘art was the only thing’ he thought he was good at, Paul began his baptism into the fashion world in the 1960s in Paris where, barely in his 20s, he trained at the Saint Honoré Hautes Coutures boutiques and went on to become design assistant at Jacques Esterel. Years spent in Milan and then New York allowed Paul to hone the skills essential for success in the industry, and on his return to Ireland in 1979 he launched his own fashion label; Paul Costelloe Collections.

The Present

The Costelloe brand has grown extensively since its earliest beginnings where womenswear lies at the heart of what the brand represents. The mainline Costelloe Collection and Dressage Collection embrace Paul’s desire to dress ‘real women’ in fabrics that ‘feel good and are fluid’. However, Paul allows his creativity to run riot for the presentation of his catwalk collections given twice a year at London Fashion Week, an event he has opened for the past 6 seasons. Menswear is probably the fastest growing area in the brand with collections also shown at London Fashion Week and the newly emerged ‘Costelloe & Sons’ range which embraces the family ideals Paul holds so dear. These core items have now been complimented by projects in homewares, jewellery, opticals and corporatewear, all of which have been met with huge success.     

The Future

One of the key philosophies which has emerged in the last two years, where multiple businesses have shattered under economic strain, is Heritage. With six sons and one daughter, Paul sees the importance of a family heritage which can carry a brand through the good times, and the bad. This philosophy will keep the Costelloe name alive as a family run business which holds so much latent value for the future of the company. Paul’s ambitions for the next decade will hope to see the brand continue to expand into a new range of different products, including childrenswear, footwear, swimwear and fragrances. However, the key objective will be to see the Costelloe name visible not only in the UKand Ireland, but on a truly global scale. With his strong Irish-American roots, branching out into new territories such as the USA is now not a question of ‘if’ but ‘when’.