February 2022
Aggie Choi
INTERVIEW W AGGIE CHOI [DESIGNER, PACH PROJECT]
I think my relationship to beauty is always fluctuating and being reshaped. We’re constantly bombarded with visual information and fed idealistic dreams. I would be lying if I told you this doesn’t inform or detriment my relationship to beauty. It’s always those moments when I catch myself falling for it – and then simply decide to stop caring – that actually let me radiate from within.
What is the design ethos surrounding your work at Pach Project?
Right now, Pach Project is a big, ambitious baby that was born with the intention to challenge, mobilise and resolve issues of sustainability, inclusivity (size-, gender-) and accessibility (social, financial) without compromising on the creative freedom and storytelling that is integral to fashion. Often we find brands that consider one element but neglect another. I am of the belief that all of these longstanding issues in the fashion industry are intersectional. With a little more love, effort and community spirit, this can be only the start of an abundance of opportunity and positive change.
Can you describe the feeling of wearing a Pach Project garment?
It honestly feels … so soft on the skin. We have gone through a deep dive to source the best quality organic and certified fabric for our garments. Using organic material also means it’s better for sensitive skin with the absence of pesticides and toxins. I’d also like Pach Project wearers to feel confidence and comfort, whereby the individual takes control of their own expression, rather than letting the garment dictate that for you.
How do you make the space to experiment within the (often rigid) politics of the fashion industry?
I literally just created my own space! As much as I love fashion as a creative medium itself, the industry is definitely not the most inviting or forgiving space to work in. A lot comes into play here including vanity, elitism, lack of diversity and transparency, power play, unethical working conditions, apathy towards sustainability, financial and social inaccessibility … I could go on. Anyway, it’s everything that gives me stress-induced and dust-related eczema and I will have no more hydrocortisone cream on my precious body. I literally refuse to play this game anymore, and no one should need to.
Creating my own space meant freeing up the rigidity, finding alternative means of working in parallel to the current industry – such as taking back all the off-cuts to create experimental pieces – and valuing time, creative freedom and experience over money. It takes a lot of courage and financial insecurity (for now), but I promise it is so liberating!