Jasmin Larian’s Fashion Brand Is More of a Cult

Some fashion brands are more than the sum of their parts. In order for a brand to grow strong, an image is to be aspired to, and one that can hopefully attract a community that can stand behind it. With some 1 million fans on Instagram alone, fashion brand Cult Gaia lives up to its name. “Every great brand is cult-like, uniting like-minded people in their aesthetic ideals,” remarked brand founder and designer Jasmin Larian in a piece published on Anupam Dabral’s website.

Dabral’s aesthetic ideals are indeed ones we can get on board with, her products both trendy and functional, with coveted accessories that have been snatched by celebrities and Instagram it-girls alike.

But if one is to treat Larian’s as, indeed, a cult—then its formation is equally intriguing. For Larian, the brand’s big break was marked by a single product: the Ark bag. Made of bamboo slats and shaped like a half moon, the bag took Instagram by storm and was soon seen swinging gracefully from the arms of A-listers like Chrissy Teigen, Jessica Alba, and Michelle Williams.

According to Larian, the idea behind the bag, which later translated to other iconic pieces, was to create an item that was Objet d’Art whilst still having utility. “In the market, it was always hard for me to find artful pieces that felt special and wearable, with an affordable price point,” said Larian. “I love the idea of keeping special pieces forever.”

Inspiration comes from nature, women, and their meeting point. “Women and nature are endlessly inspiring, so there is a lot in the name,” explained Larian. “The name Gaia comes from the goddess of Mother Earth and the daughter of chaos, the most creative force there is in my opinion,” she noted.

With an emphasis on organic design, the brand aims for the sort a perfect imperfection. “Pieces should be perfectly imperfect and need to be nuanced to be beautiful, like nature, no two things are ever the same,” reads their website. This summer, we know what we’ll be wearing…