“My mother is really the one who sparked my obsession for fashion,” says Victorya Hong of her contemporary womens wear line, na•be. When her family first immigrated to the United States, settling in a small rural town in Virginia, Victorya´s mother initially bought a sewing machine out of sheer frustration. “She just wasn´t able to find the same quality of clothing that she used to get made for us in Korea. So, she decided that she could do it herself…I guess I inherited some of her determination as well.”
Fashion wasn´t always a clear path for the 37-year old. After graduating from the University of Chicago, she spent six years working as a journalist in France and in Belgium before pursuing fashion. “I literally woke up one morning and knew,” she says, describing how she packed her bags and moved decisively to New York, enrolling in Parsons’ associate degree program.
Following stints designing at several well-known clothing companies, Victorya decided to strike out on her own. “I just always felt that there was so much I needed to learn first, before I began my own line,” she says.
In 2007, she was cast as one of fifteen designers to appear on Project Runway Season 4. Following her elimination, Victorya showed as part of the official IMG Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week in February 2008.
Victorya continues to live and design in New York.
na•be (pronounced nah bee’) is the Korean word for butterfly. In choosing this name, Victorya says: ¨I thought it was the perfect for my label because design is very much a process for me, and transformative in so many ways.”
