Three Latinx fashion designers in Chicago share their unique journeys to breaking into the industry, their creative process, and what they would tell aspiring fashion designers.
Fashion is ever changing in a world saturated with trends that determine what is and is not in style. What does not change is the passion and unique edge brought by every designer behind an article of clothing.
Chicago is home to fashion creatives in all walks of life, proving that there is no singular mold to what it means to be a fashion designer. The passion and love for creating a piece that was once a mere vision and seeing the way it can make people feel like their best selves is what bonds these creative visionaries.
Designers may use their upbringing and heritage as an asset to their creativity, giving them a distinct view of the world that is driven by childhood memories, inherited fashion and desire for community building.
Estefania Galvan: Founder and creative director of The MŌS Brand
Galvan was born and raised in a small city in Colombia before making her move to the United States where she attended Columbia College Chicago. Growing up, she knew she had a passion for creativity but didn’t imagine being able to make a living out of it. “It was more like something I watched on TV. I played with my Barbies and made clothes for them,” said Galvan.
While pursuing her degree in international business, Galvan looked at the work of her peers at Columbia and realized fashion was a passion she could seriously pursue. “I was walking on these corridors and looking at the drawings and the mannequins and the fabrics, and I just felt my heart bumping hard and I was like, ‘I really like it and I feel something very special with it.’” A few years after graduating, the MŌS brand was born.
MŌS is a lifestyle, tailoring and fashion brand that prioritizes creating and wearing fashion with intention. MŌS has various clothing lines, from the “Art Wear” line which features silk scarves patterned with original art, to the “Essentials” line which carries simple casual wear such as hoodies and tees. Of the cornerstones of MŌS, the “Atelier” is Galvan’s favorite. The Atelier features one-of-a-kind pieces she’s created in collaboration with her clients where she has the chance to take their visions and make them a reality.
“Hearing their story and hearing what they want, and then taking all of it and kind of putting it into a visual and then seeing the process, how it takes shape and then you get something beautiful that they are gonna enjoy, but also they want to treasure,” said Galvan.
Galvan’s culture and upbringing has played a big role in the way she views creating her pieces. It gave her a creative background that she did not realize she had around her — from childhood such as Colombian artisan work or her grandmother’s work as a seamstress.
Her culture helped her channel her creativity as she worked alongside highly experienced classmates: “I was very intimidated by the other students,” she said. Being in that kind of environment motivated her to continue learning and doing what she loved. Through every class assignment, she envisioned herself working as though she was already a brand owner commemorating her culture through her pieces.
“I made a commitment to myself that every single project or assignment, task, homework — I was gonna do it as if I had a brand. In every single project, I wanted to bring my culture somehow,” said Galvan.
Her creative process has changed over the last several years, but what has grown to be a pillar in the way she approaches her work in MŌS is her faith. “If I had to just [reduce] that to one person then I’ll say God. God is the ultimate creator that exists. So many cool things and inspiration and creativity comes from Him.”
Photo credits to Estefania Galvan.
Vanessa Arroyo: Founder of SERES Footwear
Arroyo is a Mexican American, Chicago-based shoe designer who founded SERES Footwear in 2023. She started working in apparel design at the age of 20 and later fell into the world of footwear after moving to New York City. She then moved to Mexico for some time to continue pursuing her newfound interest in the art of shoemaking.
The name SERES is the Spanish translation of the word “beings,” with the brand stating that it is dedicated to “putting a spotlight on every participant” that makes their footwear possible, according to their official website. Each pair of shoes is designed in the United States, but hand-crafted in Mexico through small batches using natural, locally sourced materials such as leather and vegetable-based tannins to give each shoe its rich color.
The brand was formed after Arroyo saw a major lack of women-owned brands in footwear and even smaller representation in Mexico, despite the large industry. She took on the challenge to create more representation in the industry, doing things in her own way.
SERES is a reflection of everything Arroyo is — her past and her present. For instance, being environmentally aware and sustainable with her pieces is not something she strategically planned when creating her brand, but is something that felt intuitive due to her connection to nature and interest in the environmental sciences. “I thought I was gonna go to school to be an environmental scientist, and there’s a side of me that is fascinated with nature. All of its creatures. And I’ve incorporated that a lot in my work,” Arroyo said.
Along with this, the familial influence is strong in SERES. When creating her footwear, she aims to mimic the silhouettes she wore as a child, crediting her parents for her style growing up. “My parents did a great job showing me the culture. Like everything about me speaks house, freestyle culture and Latino culture of the early ‘90s. That’s just me,” said Arroyo. Her upbringing and parents’ love for style taught her what it means for pieces to feel timeless.
For SERES, the aim is to create pieces people feel they can throw on their feet with every outfit; following trends is not in the picture. “My shoes are those more mutable pieces with little touches of boldness, but I wanted to make sustainable lifestyle accessible and easy for people so that you don’t have to think, ‘Does this look good with my outfit?’” said Arroyo.
SERES’s current “Luz and Mousey” collection, named after her parents, features open-toed, chunky-heeled sandals that can be dressed up or down.
Photo credits to Vanessa Arroyo
Emmanuel Cabrera: Founder of Gente Fina
Cabrera’s story is unique in the fact that he is a multifaceted business owner with an unconventional introduction to fashion. Through one of his blue-collar job’s typical tasks, custom tarp manufacturing, Cabrera discovered his love for sewing. “It started with messing with my own jackets, with my own wardrobe, fixing my work clothes, patching it up. Then friends started asking me to fix their stuff or to adjust sleeves on their shirts.”
In 2018, he had the idea to start Gente Fina with his interest in clothing.
Gente Fina is a streetwear brand that currently sells a wide range of accessories, tops and bottoms, with some pieces displaying phrases of empowerment such as “We fight racists” and adding touches of commonly known Mexican/Chicano imagery. The brand also has an athletic line, Gente Fina Sport, which currently sells a simpler and more casual style of clothing in comparison to the rest of the brand’s apparel.
Envisioning clothing for Gente Fina starts with Cabrera’s perception of his physical surroundings. Seeing a color within a color and imagining an article of clothing, or admiring a pattern and brainstorming how he can incorporate it into a new Gente Fina piece. Cabrera then finds ways to connect his culture to his work, which bleeds through Gente Fina on the frontlines through its various collections, as well as behind the scenes through his work ethic.
Entering fashion was another way of tapping into his entrepreneurial spirit. Not having finished high school and being a business owner, Cabrera says figuring things out wasn’t new to him. “I had a little bit of knowledge when it comes to business because of the business I had already started. I’ve always had kind of an entrepreneur mindset,” Cabrera said.
What was challenging for Cabrera was the cost of working in the industry and creating clothes, which he worked through by saving scraps of material whenever possible. “I still have, to this day, rolls and rolls from fabrics that I just put to the side in my warehouse. I didn’t have the money to buy new rolls of fabric. So, it was just to get creative. Get resourceful.”
Overall, he knew that despite the loss in income and major sacrifices he had to make, staying consistent was necessary, though it was the toughest part of building his brand at the start.
Despite obstacles, Gente Fina went on to create drops for some of Chicago’s largest names such as the Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox and Chicago Fire. Cabrera also displays his work at fashion shows internationally in various cities in Mexico. Aside from the high profile Gente Fina has acquired, Cabrera is ultimately happy to connect with members of his community. “I never imagined one of my designs connecting with so many people in such a deep way,” he continued. “Some of the best moments are when people come to me like, ‘Man, you don’t understand, this shirt reminds me of my childhood.’”
In fact, one of Cabrera’s favorite collections is Gente Fina’s “Bonitos Recuerdos” collection which featured pieces inspired by memories of his childhood, such as button-up shirts with specific, well-known Hispanic iconography such as roosters, scorpions and roses.
Photo credits to Emmanuel Cabrera
Words to aspiring Latinx fashion creatives
The overarching theme between these three creatives is that they found their way in fashion by having an interest in various different industries. Finding their way to being brand owners on their own time, through their own distinct ties to creativity.
Galvan reflects on the way her fear made her second guess her choice to work in fashion, questioning if she would successfully be able to make a living from it. She encourages young creatives to dream big and do it afraid even if things seem unrealistic.
“You can do it even if you feel fearful. Even if you think in your mind, ‘I don’t know how to do it, I don’t have the resources,’ all the things that come with fear,” Galvan said. “Blocking that feeling, I just feel like it gives you the opportunity to see beyond things, and I don’t know, things start taking place when you’re not afraid.”
Arroyo acknowledges the comments aspiring creatives will receive throughout their journeys and urges them to stay true to their passions: “A lot of people are going to say ridiculous things about how it’s not possible to achieve your goals and your aspirations, and it’s important that you don’t listen to them. Period.”
She also emphasizes the need for prioritizing self care and allowing yourself to be selective of opportunities that come your way to avoid burnout. Along with this, she says to be comfortable cold messaging people to put yourself out there and make connections with likeminded people.
Cabrera believes staying to yourself and trusting your own opinion is crucial when entering a creative industry such as fashion. He describes how it is important to not take things personal if your designs don’t resonate with people, along with not letting other people’s ideas interfere with your own creative process. “This industry is cutthroat. This industry is expensive. Stay consistent.” He emphasizes that aspiring creatives should be authentic and showcase that through their work: “If you really want to see an impact, it has to be unique to you, to your story, and you will be surprised how many people connect or relate.”
Aspiring fashion creatives in the Chicagoland area can look at the Chicago Fashion Coalition for more ways to get involved in their city.
Header Image by Noemi Romero
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