Ep. 84: Better Design Starts with How It’s Made with Angie Furlong

Angie Furlong has spent more than four decades designing clothes, building teams, traveling the world, and learning the industry from the inside out. Some things in fashion can only be learned by understanding how they’re made.In Episode 84, Andrew is joined by designer and creative director Angie Furlong, whose career has taken her from Guess and Esprit to Lucky Brand, J Brand, True Religion, Sundance, and beyond.Angie came into denim at a remarkable moment. At Guess, she learned by working directly with mills, pattern makers, sewing rooms, dye houses, and laundries. At Esprit, she entered an entirely different world, traveling to Hong Kong, developing collections internationally, and watching the industry begin its shift toward global production. Andrew and Angie look back at the rise of premium denim in Los Angeles, the experimentation that made the city a center of the denim world, and what happened as manufacturing moved offshore and designers became increasingly separated from the people actually making their clothes.They also look at what comes next: AI, vintage and resale, repurposing, mentoring young designers, and why technology can be an extraordinary tool, but only if you understand the craft behind what you’re asking it to do.After more than 40 years, Angie says she would choose this industry all over again. Her concern is what the next generation may be losing along the way: the technical knowledge, curiosity, and understanding of how something actually gets made.Angela (Angie) FurlongDesign Leader & Creative DirectorLinkedInPlease follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.