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Antoine Navarro and Víctor Pao are the designers behind the Valencia-based fashion label Luxoir. The duo are among the most non-conformist and innovative designers of recent years creating checkerboard jumpers, rain ponchos and balloon shapes which jump from the feminine to the masculine wardrobe in a very personal reinvention of young men's clothing. Fashionfromspain.com spoke with them a few weeks before their spring/summer 2008 collection, Mirage – their first to include womenswear - hit the Pasarela Cibeles catwalk:

When, how and where did Luxoir come to be?
Víctor and I met in 2003 when we were working on projects related to fashion, design, art and photography. We got along really well from the start and later decided to begin our own project together. In June 2004, we held our first fashion show at Festival Este’04 in Valencia and we officially started our company in September that year.

Did you both study fashion?
Antoine’s training is primarily photography-related. Mine is quite varied, and I hope to keep diversifying. I have studied tailoring; technical and artistic drawing; as well as fashion design at university. Our families aren’t really involved in the world of fashion, although we must mention Víctor’s mother, Lola, who is a fantastic dressmaker.

What are your roles within the company?
Víctor is in charge of garment design, pattern making and creating the prototypes. He also draws the illustrations that are such a defining part of Luxoir designs. I carry out the roles of brand manager and production manager, and am in charge of the company's corporate image.

How did you arrive to the name Luxoir?
The name came about as a play on words that we used to describe the luxury that is being able to dress the way you really want. We started designing clothes that we wanted to wear but which we couldn’t easily find in shops, thus we began with men’s fashion. The ending oir refers to the French verb tense, and we just like the way the word sounds.

Do you wear your own creations?
Of course. Our wardrobes contain items from all the Luxoir collections, in addition to some unique designs, company trademarks if you will, that only we have. Small whims brought to reality.

“Inspiration either softly caresses you or it hits you on the head and drags you around”

You are linked to Valencia, where you have your workshop. Have you ever thought of relocating and setting up in Madrid or Barcelona?
Antoine: At every level, our headquarters are still in Valencia. Nevertheless, we do have a presence in Barcelona (Wepwawet) and Madrid (L’Showroom). We haven’t ruled out moving to one or other.

How would you define the Luxoir style?
Very dynamic, often whimsical and full of nuances. We like to put emotion and spark into everything we do. The way we use colour appears as a constant across all the collections, but it evolves and is transformed as we gain more experience and knowledge.