Henry Holland thinks his big break in the fashion industry was an "accident."
Henry Holland
The 34-year-old creative mastermind - who launched his own label House of Holland in 2008 - has admitted he has "never" considered himself as a designer, and he thinks it was "fate" that turned him into a global success because he didn't anticipate his creations would be such a huge hit.
Speaking on behalf of online job boards totaljobs and Milkround in their latest campaign around achieving a healthier work-life balance, Henry said: "Since day one, I've always approached House of Holland as a brand and I've never considered myself a young designer.
"My big break was a happy accident like my entrance into the fashion industry. I made t-shirts with the names of fashion designers on them and I gifted them to my friends, some of those friends were the designers who were the names on the t-shirts. People first saw my t-shirts because Gareth Pugh was wearing it for work and he was so busy he didn't have time to get changed after his fashion show. Gareth was wearing my t-shirt the night before his fashion show and he worked through the night so he was still wearing it when he came out for his bow at the end of fashion week! I think it was fate and very much meant to be. I believe in that type of thing.
"I actually had no intention of creating anything that would change my career path. I just started making t-shirts for my friends and I to wear as a personal project. I think the authenticity and grassroots nature of the work really resonated with people and the industry - it took off quite quickly!"
And the businessman tries to keep himself separate from his brand so it becomes more of a "team effort".
He explained: "I didn't use my name for House of Holland because I've always seen what I'm doing as being about a brand, rather than it being about me. My outlook is that it's very much team effort."
And Henry has revealed he has high hopes for his future in the business as he is keen to explore other "product categories".
He said: "And there's still so many different product categories and so many areas I want to work in. Watch this space."
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