UZURI: What is your background?
I was born in Corsica and my childhood was spent between there and Tahiti because my father was in the Foreign Legion. So I had the opportunity to travel and discover new cultures at a young age. As a teenager I went to school in the south of France, before moving to Paris at the beginning of my adulthood.

UZURI: What inspired you to get into fashion?
See response “How did you first get interested in becoming a fashion designer?”

UZURI: What happened after you finished fashion Design College?
I didn’t go to fashion school. I am self-taught and I started my career in the luxury industry, working in sales.

UZURI: Did you train or apprentice with another designer? How was that?
I was noticed by Jean Paul Gaultier in 1998 and immediately recruited and given the responsibility for the fashion shows of his famous “Maison de Haute Couture” This unique experience were a revelation and a revolution at the same time for me. It enabled me to realize my passion and also to learn an enormous amount of things from one of the biggest couturiers of our time.

UZURI: Who is your inspiration?
My experiences and emotions inspire me and guide my creative force. What I come across in daily life can inspire me, whether it's in the media, cinema, music, etc. All creative arts are a fountain of inspiration. I think also of my two favorite model friends and muses, Marie and
Alexandra.

UZURI: What is your design philosophy?
Comfort, modernity, independence, emancipation and elegance all constitute the pillars of my couture house.

UZURI: When you create something, what goes through your mind?
Firstly a lot of emotions pass through me, such as excitation, it is like being possessed! I only have one desire, that of being able to see the model worn.

UZURI: How would you describe your style of fashion?
I would have to call it the avant-garde of nouvelle-couture.

UZURI: How do you put your chosen colors together?
Nature and the greater universe can often amaze me by the harmony of colors, however, I think that my color combinations come intuitively.

It stemmed from the wish to create three-dimensional outfits by combining new volumes that were based on architecture. For that I imagined an astronaut woman who travels in our galaxy, and upon her return on Earth, we discover an intergalactic woman, resolutely futuristic.

UZURI: What about fashion as a business?
I don’t see fashion as a business, but more like a means of expression. Nevertheless, economics are a reality. Usually a fashion house will get its turnover from their prêt-à-porter collections, while the couture runs a greater risk of not being profitable. Our situation is a kind of paradox. Today, my couture sells well, and we are just beginning to develop a ready-to-wear collection for men and women. One will be able to find in the latter recurrent themes that are transposed from my couture.

UZURI: Does the preparation of a season’s collection take time?
A collection might take five minutes to create in my mind, six months to realize, and only fifteen minutes to be revealed in a show.

UZURI: How do you intend women to feel when wearing Eric Tibusch labeled clothing?
Feminine, elegant, and unique.

UZURI: What are the best aspects of working in fashion?
There are many in fact. You have the chance to meet a large array of amazing people from different backgrounds. It’s also an industry composed of people who are working in it because they are passionate and dedicated, all the knowledge and techniques conserved from the beginnings of fashion are at our disposal to create for today’s public. But above all, fashion is a medium to let my creativity loose.

 UZURI: What are the worst aspects of working in fashion?
There are also quite a few. Criticism that is non-constructive is one negative aspect. But also there is also a lot of know-how that disappears in time because there a fewer people today who perpetuate traditional artisan methods that existed in the past. Today, everything is about sales and marketing and this can be a suppressive force that stifles creativity. And finally, the process of creation is a solitary journey; something which I think is shared by all artists.

UZURI: How can people find and purchase your clothes?
By consulting my website www.tibusch.com

UZURI: What can we expect to see from you in the future?
A men’s collection as well as a line of accessories, from bags to sunglasses… and numerous surprises! (giggles).

UZURI: What do you have to say to the next generation, particularly for those hoping to follow in your footsteps?
You need to have a lot of courage, passion, patience, and to believe in your dreams. To get there, you need first to be emancipated, and to stay there, you need to make sure that you surround yourself in the right company.