Gabriela Hearst prioritized sustainability in her design process long before it became a buzzword. She first learned about the concept growing up on her family’s ranch in Uruguay, where utility was critical—they were hours from the nearest town, so their things had to last. They rationed out their flour and sugar and made their own soap. Now, Hearst has left soap-making for a successful career in luxury clothing design, and shown her competitors that the industry doesn’t have to be wasteful.
Hearst joined Vogue Runway Director Nicole Phelps in the podcast studio to chat about her next chapter since leaving her post as creative director of Chloé in the latter part of 2023. They started with the challenge of balancing both brands between New York and Paris (while also being a mother and navigating a global pandemic): “People think that part was rough,” Hearst said of the juggling act, “and I didn’t because I love what I do. I mean, I grew up on a ranch—I was herding cattle all my childhood, so yeah, this is nice.”
The conversation then turned to Hearst’s commitment to sustainability. It’s an ethos she brought to Chloé, turning it into a B Corp-certified brand, and a constant consideration when sourcing materials for her current collections. She explained that eliminating excess was core to her mission at Chloé; when it comes to quality products, less is more. While her clothes could certainly be described as “quiet luxury,” they really exist beyond the realm of fast-paced trends.
Hearst is the first to admit that she’s always marched to her own beat. She is fascinated by spirituality, divinity, and witchiness, and has based several of her collections on powerful women from history. Hearst looks to the past to learn from female thought leaders and creators, seeing them as the only solution for the future. Amid a digital revolution and raging climate crisis, women, she feels, will precipitate the change we need. “I am a devout believer that we won’t see the progress that we need to save our species if women are not in leadership positions,” Hearst told Phelps.
With her latest collection came an ode to the surrealist painter and feminist Leonora Carrington. Hearst knows that we are living through trying times—and surrealism is a lens through which we can try to make some sense of it all.