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Andrés Sardá is one of the most respected underwear and lingerie designers. As a result of his achievements in fabric design and innovation, his collections are coveted by women all over the world. It is no coincidence that he was the first designer to use lycra and that his garments grace the most prestigious shop-windows of major capital cities. His philosophy is based on a continuous search for excellence, not only in the selection of fabrics, but also in design and distribution. Due to be presented shortly on Madrid’s Cibeles Catwalk, his next collection is likely to prove yet another surprise for fashion critics and general public alike. The renowned designer lets us into some of the secrets of his success and tells us about his plans for the future.

Your firm is a hallmark in the world of lingerie; let’s talk about its origins...

My family had been involved in the clothing sector for many years, making lace and mantillas. After studying textiles engineering, I started work in the family business with my siblings, but it wasn’t long before I realised the mantilla market in Spain was running out of steam. So I went to Latin America to sell our products there and, at the same time, to look into restructuring a business in which we could all see there was little future. After giving the matter some thought, we reached the conclusion that designing and creating underwear might be a good solution. In fact we coined the Spanish term for it, because in the fifties and sixties this type of garment was treated, at worst as orthopaedics and at best as corsetry. My aim was to create underwear collections that women really wanted to buy and in which they could feel confident and elegant: garments that would give them something to get excited about.

Something you have been doing since 1960, and to great acclaim. What do you think is the secret of your success?

Of course, any company has to have a grassroots organisation behind it: a team of people and organisational structure that works. But from a qualitative standpoint, our main strengths are undoubtedly creativity, quality and image. I’m satisfied with the work and the results we are getting. We have some of the very best customers in a great many countries.

The creativity apparent in your constant innovation in fabrics, for instance?

Yes, quite. In fact, we were pioneers in the use of lycra, a fabric that has since become very popular, and which we took on board in our very first collection in 1960. Since then, there has been no let-up in our attempts to find new alternatives and obtain the best possible quality.

In addition to the Andrés Sardá brand, you have also launched others aimed at a less elitist target. Can you tell us something about those?

Our star brand and the one we started the business with was Andrés Sardá, where the collections are top of the range, as you know. They are right up there with the latest trends and are made from the very finest materials. But this type of brand has a limited target, which is why we considered developing others like Risk and University, which are more affordable designs aimed at a larger number of people.

What fabrics do you use for them and where do they come from?

We use the sector’s international trade fairs as our pointers. Most of the materials come from Europe: Spain, France, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland... We attach particular importance to the supplier being able to meet our demands and having the right kind of machinery. In Switzerland and Germany, we go for more technical things. We are always looking for the best and we work closely with suppliers to discover new options in fabric manufacture.

The fabrics we use most include stretch fabrics, as this is an important quality in lingerie: stretch tulles, flexible fabrics... We are experts on the subject and use the best elasticated designs.