Meeting with Geoffrey Moreels, founder of “MY BOB”, the roving hat.
Conceived in 2008 by Geoffrey Moreels, an HEC graduate, a former manager in the paramedic sector, a tireless traveller who loves making human contacts and has a huge address-book, the MY BOB Belgian accessory brand is the absolute embodiment of everything that’s most human and noble about globalisation. Meeting with the head of a happy company
You admit that you knew nothing about fashion when you got started. How in that case was it possible to come up with such a coherent concept?
MY BOB was originally a story of chance meetings. At the start, when I wanted to push my career in a new direction, I had various ideas in mind, some of which were far removed from the world of fashion and accessories. A friend who lived in Ecuador talked to me about the hats they made down there. I mulled over the idea, and came up with a customisation concept based on that product before launching MY BOB.
Customisation: it’s an idea whose time has come. Yet you say you weren’t up to date with the latest trends...
It’s the truth. Besides, I was delighted to discover that, just after I had set the brand up, the Panama hat had come back into vogue. As far as customisation is concerned, I believed right from the start that it would be all about the end-customer. So, for both practical and commercial reasons, I eventually decided to turn my partners’ boutiques to good account. At the trade fairs we attend, buyers have the facility to personalise their order.
How is that done in practice?
Each season we launch a collection that’s inspired by a destination that gives us a special buzz. This autumn and winter it’s the Italian ski resort of Cortina, in the Dolomites. We designed felt hats, caps, bonnets, etc, which our customers can embellish with small embroidered accessories, ribbons, feathers, or hand-embroidered brooches made at a small workshop in Mumbai. These accessories really are little gems that make every hat unique.
Your network of suppliers is embedded right in the DNA of MY BOB...
Above all, this brand is the confluence of a totally Belgian idea and the know-how of a wonderful team of suppliers scattered throughout the world: Spain for our felt hats, Ecuador for Panama hats, India for embroidered items, Italy for our summer braided straw hats, etc. For about a year now, I’ve been backed by a Parisian designer – yet another happy encounter – who gives our collections a more fashionable orientation. His clear vision has given our brand a shot in the arm. For my part, I control our business strategy while continuing to expand our network of partners. A third person is in charge of back-office.
Rather like accessory brands such as Delvaux, you’re much more firmly established in Asia than in Belgium, for example.....
That’s right. MY BOB has a presence at wonderful points of sale in China and Japan. More recently, we’ve also been represented by an American agent who’s in charge of positioning us better in that market. With regard to the next White trade fair, which we shall be attending shortly, we hope it will enable us to offer our Summer 2018 collection at some fine European boutiques, particularly in Milan.
Did the earlier part of your career help you to take a more pragmatic view of the project?
Yes, without doubt. Although it’s well developed, MY BOB is a state of constant change. Obviously, our attention to detail applies to the product itself - we’re the first to have made an ultra-lightweight felt hat for the summer – as well as to the packaging and logo (a B affixed to every hat: ed.) and our customer service, which we aim to bring as close as possible to perfection.
By Marie Honnay
Further info
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