Empowerment through Uniqueness: The Vision Behind LITTLEMISS.mon

In the bustling streets of Yangon, Myanmar, a sartorial revolution is taking place. November heralded the arrival of a brand that doesn’t just dress women but celebrates them: LITTLEMISS.mon. Seamlessly marrying the avant-garde with the timeless, this Ready-to-wear womenswear brand captures the imagination by sculpting silhouettes, playing with volume, and adorning garments with nuanced details that sing a song of individuality. Yet, the brand’s story goes beyond the tape measure and fabric. Founded by the enigmatic Lilly, LITTLEMISS.mon is an ode to the discerning woman who craves designer quality without the designer price tag, and who treasures ethical craftsmanship as much as aesthetic appeal. As we sit down with Lilly, the passionate founder and designer, we delve deep into the inspirations, aspirations, and the future of a brand that is redefining fashion in Myanmar and beyond.

Lilly, For those who haven't come across your brand 'LITTLEMISS.mon', could you divulge some information about who you are and what it is you do?

‘LITTLEMISS.mon’ is a ready-to-wear womenswear designer brand based in Yangon, Myanmar. It was first launched to the public in November 2022.

What was it that inspired you to launch your own brand?

I’ve always wanted to have my own fashion company one day. Even when I was in university, I dreamed of having one some day. However, it happened sooner than I imagined.

While collecting experience in the fashion industry, it became more evident to me that most of the raw resources and goods are imported from Asia, which is where I am from.

The prices of these materials tripled due to taxes and shipping fees when exported. Most garment manufacturing factories are based in Asia where workers have poor working conditions and wages as well. It breaks my heart to see these products are sold with unimaginable prices to customers when exported to other countries. It breaks my heart even more that most people in my own country are willing to pay for that amount when the manufacturing costs aren’t even a quarter of it.

I knew what lacked in my country was a brand with strong history, brand-identity and the technology or marketing for it. I believed that with what I learned and experienced, I can create a brand made in Myanmar that can be recognized internationally with a sustainable approach.

When you came to the decision to launch 'Little Miss.mon', where did you first begin?

As a start up, I started small. For every collection, I name it BATCH 0001, BATCH 0002, BATCH 0003, etc,… I do not produce many designs for each collection and the amount of stocks are limited. No matter how much a collection sells well, our brand does not produce each design more than once, if the original amount of stock produced are all sold.

By doing this, we avoid mass production and all our customers have a special feeling of purchasing a limited-edition. We follow the rule of ‘First come, First serve’, making ‘LITTLEMISS.mon’ a ready to wear limited designer-brand without having to sell our products with insane prices.

Where does your passion come from for the fashion world?

I have passion for the fashion world ever since the age I start to know what a hobby is. Even as a kid, I used to spend my days drawing girls wearing different clothes, doodling outfits on my school textbooks and such. People also praised me for my good fashion sense.

I love how clothes give me the empowerment. I could be feeling down but when I dress up, I feel like a completely different person. I want people who wear what I make to feel the same way.

When I make beautiful clothes, the wearer feels beautiful. When I make cute clothes, the wearer feels cute. I want to uplift a person’s mood or make someone’s day with what I am good at and passionate about.

I want to focus on your designs, where does your inspiration come from when you start to create a new garment?

Like I mentioned before, we produce different designs for every collection. I could be producing office-wear for this collection but the next collection could be a line of wedding dresses. You can never predict what I am gonna launch next as I like to surprise people.

I see my work as art. By putting certain restrictions, it takes the fun away and makes me less creative. However for this question, I am going to focus on the inspiration for our latest fall collection ‘BATCH 0011’.

Obviously the choice of colors are meant for the tones of autumn. The designs are inspired by fallen leaves we see in this season. All the cut-outs, the asymmetries and layerings comes from the pile of decaying leaves we see on the streets. With that in mind, I made them fit into our brand’s design category which is fabric manipulation, silhouette and minimalism.

Even though I said minimalism, you can see the amount of work we put into the garments when you take a close-up look. For example, small little unnecessary buttons, belts at area that are not needed, excessive number of pockets or zips that can’t be seen. The idea for this comes from how I see people. You never really know a person until you properly spend some time with them or is attentive to them. All ‘LITTLEMISS.mon’ designs fit into this category.

What's your starting point when it comes to designing a new collection or garment?

I start off with a lot of primary research. I go out, see my surrounding and find what excites me. That is why I like to go out alone. When you go somewhere alone, you pay more attention to what is around you.

Then I come back to my studio, draw some designs and do a lot of experimenting together with my team. There are times I even wore experimented pieces out in public to see how people respond to it. They don’t know it could be part of my next collection though. To sum up, there is a lot of experimentation before the finalized sketch for our final piece comes out.

Sustainability runs through your brand, why do you believe this is important?

Of course it is very important. There are many benefits to sustainability, both short-term and long-term. Aside from the environmental protection which is well-known, I will speak from a business perspective. Being sustainable is economical and makes you a stronger business model as well. It is easy to be unsustainable but harder to be sustainable. Being sustainable enables an audience that attract employees, business partners and customers who are invested in the goals of sustainability and share these values. That is why not just for the environment, this is positive for business image. This is something LITTLEMISS.mon can take pride in.

Do you believe the fashion industry is doing enough for sustainability and how do you believe they could go further?

I honestly think they are not doing enough. Of course, there are also brands who really work hard towards sustainability but there are still many who do not take this seriously. Many are still focused on profit-based and that is why fast fashion still exist. It requires a lot of work to be sustainable so many choose to ignore it.

Easy ways we can start to be sustainable is choosing a sustainable material for packaging, not producing more than demand and choosing a sustainable business partner (eg. sustainable fabric companies and manufacturers)

What 3 words would you say describes your brand best?

Iconic, Comfortable & Timeless

Is there anything you can tell us about any upcoming collections or garments you'll be releasing?

As said before, you can never predict what LITTLEMISS.mon is going to release next. This makes it more exciting and something to look forward to. However, my spoiler for the next collection is something that is dreamy and that blends well with the beautiful nature.

What advice would you give to anyone thinking about starting their own fashion label?

There are loads of fashion trends and it sure is a competitive industry. My advice would be rather than following the crowd, always do things with a different approach and set your OWN trend to build your own audience. That’s all I want to say.

You can shop the full range from LITTLEMISS.on over at littlemissmon.com.

Image Credits:

Creative Direction: Lilly Oo

Photography: Aatif Ati Zafar

Models: Sofie Deighton, Oksana Paluszkiewicz, Nele Mokae, Grace Lovesss

Make-up & Hair: Vilma Sirmulyte, Julia Ganu