Among her many notable roles, Gunel Babayeva, the young distinguished fashion designer is known as the Founder and Creative Director of Sophie Couture, a fashion powerhouse in the realm of women’s evening and bridal gowns with ateliers in Baku, Azerbaijan and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. As a wife and a mother to two young daughters, Ms. Gunel Babayeva has built upon an established background of educational and professional excellence in the fields of economics and finance to become what she is now—a globally renowned couturier and fashion dynamo. We were keen to interview Gunel – an inspiring, and unique personality to know more about her involved work, positive visions and influent voices.
Tell us about your greatest strength as a professional.
I think it’s important to emphasize two aspects here: hard work and healthy perfectionism. A professional will never deviate from a given goal, no matter how incomprehensible it may seem. It is very important to fight to the bitter end. I always try to set higher and higher goals for myself, and even when they are achieved, I am not satisfied with the small things, and set myself completely new ones, for the sake of which, sometimes I even have to leave my comfort zone. Perfectionism is reflected in healthy and constructive criticism. I know where I could do better, and where I didn’t improve, and I treat my mistakes with all severity and seriousness, trying to correct them and become better and better.
What inspired you to set up your business?
2 factors contributed to this. The first is that I have always been drawn to something creative. I have always loved to draw, to invent something new, which, by the way, I did very well. Fashion and design are something that has attracted me since childhood. I remember, when I was just a child, my grandmother taught me how to sew, she was fond of sewing and did it wonderfully. I was amazed by the volume and process of work. The fact that with your own hands you can create such beauty. Since then, I have been fascinated by fashion and the desire to create something of my own.
How did you get involved in the fashion design industry and why?
Many years have passed, I grew up, graduated from the University of Economics, and got married. I was on maternity leave, waiting for my first daughter when I had a lot of ideas for creating my products. After the birth of my first daughter, I decided to bring my ideas to life.
What are the 3 most important things that people should know about Sophie Couture?
First of all, each of our dresses is valuable because it is handmade. Moreover, all products are produced exclusively on the territory of our House. For production, we pay great attention to sewing material – we use high-quality fabrics for the limited collection released for shows and for products we have already released for sale.
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Is there something that you try to communicate through your designs?
We want to convey to the whole world that women are strong and independent. A woman chooses her path, her own life. Women are quite mysterious, their essence cannot be understood immediately, because appearance is quite deceptive. This is the aspect we want to emphasize through our design. It may be a dress that looks simple at first glance, but if you look closely, you can see it with small details, which at first glance is quite light, airy, and seems to reflect the woman herself – carefree, airy, dreamy. But it is not so. In our dresses, you can see a fairly strong, independent woman with incredible inner strength and core.
What is your favorite part of being in the fashion industry?
Of course, as I said, the creation of something new. The realization that we see women in our dresses. This inexplicable feeling.
You are a true multi-talent. What motivates you?
I am motivated by the fact that I am doing my favorite job, which brings a lot of benefits and joy to others.
All creative projects have their challenges. What challenges do independent brands like yourself?
Probably the hardest part is recruiting a team. Each person has his character, vision of life, and ambitions. It is very important, and at the same time, very difficult to create the right, right, even family atmosphere within the team. Create common motives that would move everyone equally, to achieve a common goal.
Pictures: PR