Arturo Obagero, from surfing in Spain to wearing Beyoncé’s clothes

“I come from Tapia, with one hand in front and the other behind,” jokes Spanish designer Arturo Obagero in Paris. Barely thirty years old, this Spaniard who has already dressed stars such as Harry Styles or Beyoncé is more than a promising fashion designer.

“I’ve only been working with my brand for three years, although I think it’s 20 years of my life, and we’ve achieved a lot,” Arturo Obguero of his eponymous brand told EFE in an interview. Told during. International Assembly of Fashion Professionals, Premiere Vision Paris.

His name has become known in the exclusive world of Parisian couture since 2020, but media attention rapidly increased when his designs became an iconic element of the music video for “As It Was” (2022), Harry Styles’ big hit which Has accumulated almost 700 million views on YouTube.

More recently, stars such as Adele and Beyoncé have worn his designs, and in Spain, actors such as Eduardo Casanova have been ambassadors of a style that Arturo Obagero describes as “romantic-seductive” and “classic with an esoteric touch”. Are. Spanish culture.

It’s a highly publicized world into which he arrived without rich and powerful godfathers, with only his portfolio, and which is a far cry from the setting in which he grew up: a seaside town of about 4,000 residents where his family owned a store. There is surfing.

“Notoriety is a currency, especially in the fashion world. I’m happy to work with artists I admire and who fascinate me, and I hope that continues,” says the young designer. , who are still incredulous over the names already revealed. On his CV. “I think it creates a lot of interest, that everyone questions us and associates us with them. But it also shows the passion that we have for glory, for fame,” he analyzes. Are.

The same thing happens to young hopefuls with labels: While they’re happy that people like their work, they also know that these titles are disposable. “It’s very typical of the fashion industry: you’re an emerging designer, the best of the best, and then five years later people forget about you and look for someone else… I like to take it slowly. Let’s just keep the momentum going a little bit more,” he says.

Harry Potter, Asturian version

And how did Obzero get there? “By giving myself a hard time,” he jokes. Working from a workshop based in his home in the Paris suburbs, the key to his success is tirelessly sending his proposals to stylists and press teams.

It is part of this same spirit that marked his journey from Spain to Paris, where he grew up without any real contact with fashion. The Internet allowed him to admire the shows of Alexander McQueen, Riccardo Tisci at Givenchy and Nicolas Ghesquière at Baleniaga.

“I discovered a world that fascinated me. It was a world that made me dream, that made me run, and I fell in love with creativity and even the feeling that one What one can create with a fashion show is not just a beautiful jacket,” he says.

At the age of 15, he and his mother began saving money for a day’s study at Central Saint Martins, the prestigious British school where many of his idol students studied. London opened the door to Paris, where, soon after graduating, he joined Lanvin in 2018. He remained there until he launched his own brand amid the pandemic.

With the label Arturo Obguero, he promotes eco-responsible fashion – he works with “dead stock”, unused clothes purchased by other brands – because he, having grown up by the sea, had no other way of creating. Doesn’t understand. The city of “pure nature”.