The Reality of Turning Creativity Into a Fashion Business

An interview with JJ Park, Founder of Loading Room

Many designers start a brand with a creative vision. Very few understand how quickly that vision collides with business reality.

When I spoke with JJ Park, founder of the Seoul-based brand Loading Room, what stood out wasn’t just the aesthetic of the brand, it was the learning curve behind it.

Loading Room began as a highly creative project inspired by vintage clothing and the idea of entering someone’s personal space, their room, and discovering the clothes that live there. But like many young brands, the early challenge wasn’t creativity.

It was learning how creativity fits inside a business. This is our conversation.

Esteban: For someone discovering Loading Room for the first time, what is the brand about?

JJ: I started the brand in 2024 and we are now launching our fifth season. From the beginning, I wanted to create something that felt connected to real people’s lives.

That’s why the brand is called Loading Room. I imagine it like entering someone’s room, like a thrift store, where you discover clothes that feel personal, almost like someone has lived in them.

Our collections focus a lot on vintage inspiration. We study how garments age, why certain parts of jeans tear after years of use, how fabrics fade, and then we recreate those effects intentionally. In a way, we make new vintage clothing.

Esteban: Did you study fashion formally before starting the brand?

JJ: I studied in Seoul, but I really wanted to experience the fashion world in New York. So instead of studying, I just went there and worked.

I sold clothes in showrooms, did a lot of interviews, and tried to understand the industry. At that time, I was still learning how to properly design and develop garments.

Eventually I returned to Korea and started getting closer to the industry there.

Esteban: So how did the brand actually start as a business?

JJ: It happened unexpectedly. When I was still in university, someone who had seen my graduate show contacted me. He said he was looking for a creative director and asked if I wanted to start a brand together.

He offered to invest in the first collection. It was surprising, but it gave me the opportunity to build the brand from the beginning.

Esteban: And how did you approach the first collection?

JJ: Very creatively, and not very strategically. At the beginning I didn’t think much about business. I just imagined looks for the runway: look one, look two, look three.

We developed around forty SKUs for the first season based mostly on creative ideas.

Esteban: Did the first collection sell?

JJ: Yes, actually. Four stores placed orders, which felt amazing at the time. But looking back, the collection wasn’t structured in a very commercial way. It was mostly creative experimentation.

Esteban: So early on, the process was basically: create what you love and hope people buy it?

JJ: Exactly. I focused only on creativity. If something didn’t sell, I thought it meant the designs weren’t good enough. So my reaction was always to try to make the designs better.

But eventually I realized the real problem wasn’t creativity. It was business.

Esteban: What specifically did you learn about the business side?

JJ: Merchandising. We realized the collection needed structure. Not everything could be experimental. People need approachable products too.

Before, maybe 80% of the collection was creative pieces and only 20% was commercial. Now we reversed that ratio. About 80% of the collection is wearable and commercial, and 20% is more experimental and expressive.

Once we changed that balance, the business started improving.

Esteban: So the lesson wasn’t “be less creative,” but “structure creativity better.”

JJ: Exactly. At first I thought the issue was that my creativity wasn’t strong enough. But when I hired a merchandiser, they explained something simple: the problem was pricing and positioning.

Our clothes were too expensive for a brand that people didn’t know yet.

Esteban: Do you remember your early price range?

JJ: Yes. Retail prices were significantly higher in the beginning, ranging roughly from $500 to $2,500 depending on the piece. Now the range is closer to $100 to $1,000.

Once we adjusted the pricing, things started working much better.

Esteban: How did that change your relationship with business?

JJ: At first I thought business was the enemy of creativity. Now I understand it’s actually the opposite.

Business protects creativity. It allows the brand to survive and reach people. When I see real customers wearing our clothes, that’s the most exciting part. That’s when I realized business is actually the tool that allows creativity to exist in the real world.

Esteban: You started selling through wholesale and showrooms. But recently you decided to stop that completely. Why?

JJ: Recently, we decided to step back from wholesale and focus more on D2C channels. The e-commerce ecosystem in Seoul is growing a lot, and the digital fashion ecosystem here is evolving rapidly. So we decided to focus locally first and build a stronger audience before expanding globally again.

Esteban: So the strategy now is more digital?

JJ: Yes. We’re focusing on influencer partnerships, Instagram marketing, and building awareness around the brand locally.

Eventually we want to open a physical store as well, but probably next year.

Esteban: What’s the biggest challenge now that you’re shifting from wholesale to direct-to-consumer?

JJ: Right now I’m still learning. But the biggest mindset shift is that I have to think about the business more broadly. Before, I focused on small details, the fabrics, the design, the construction.

Now I have to step back and look at the entire business. And that requires compromise.

Esteban: Compromise in what sense?

JJ: Understanding what details matter, and what details you need to let go. Earlier in my career everything was about adding more ideas, more design, more experimentation.

Now I’m learning that good design sometimes comes from subtracting, not adding.

Esteban: If a younger version of yourself asked for advice about building a brand, what would you tell them?

JJ: Think about the customer much earlier. At the beginning I only thought about what I wanted to create. I didn’t think enough about who would actually wear the clothes.

Now I always ask:  Who is the customer? What do they want to wear? What price are they willing to pay?

Fashion is creative, but if you’re building a brand, it’s still a business.

Final Reflection

One of the biggest mistakes young designers make is believing that better creativity will fix a struggling brand.

JJ Park experienced the opposite. Her early collections were full of ideas, experimentation, and strong creative vision. But the business wasn’t working.

The breakthrough didn’t come from designing more. It came from learning structure.

Understanding pricing.Balancing commercial and creative pieces.Thinking about the customer earlier.

Loading Room is still a young brand, but the lesson is already clear: Creativity starts a fashion brand. Business keeps it alive.

And sometimes the hardest realization for a designer is this: Your creativity isn’t the problem. The structure around it is.