Fashion designer and author of the high-fantasy series “The Land of Dragor” Julia Suzuki sat down with Izak Hannard to talk about her Couture clothing brand, her second novel, the recent Nick Knowles scandal and what men need to understand if they want to get involved with her.

Since donating one of her unique bespoke Couture dresses at a Strictly Come Dancing charity event a couple of years ago – and what became a celebrity bidding war – Julia’s brand has been quickly expanded and been going from strength-to-strength. It was, in fact, the only prize item that sold in the auction that night and had celebrities swooning after her design. Things have gone from strength to strength with the continual dressing of high profile people, whilst Julia also brands herself with her unique fashion sense.

Julia grew up in the British county of Staffordshire, indulged by a countryside home where her first novel “The Gift of Charms” was inspired. Julia graduated from university with a BA in business administration. From the age of 25, Julia already had a licencing company with clients including Aston Martin and Yokohama. Julia has gone on to become very successful in her working life ever since.

Julia went on to describe the exciting plans lined up this summer, after penning the second novel of her high-fantasy series “The Land of Dragor”.

“The seven-book series has got its plot sealed, my literary agent of WGM talent based in Manchester is now working on its placement.”

International culture has played a dynamic part in the way Julia’s books are written as well as her high-end fantasy inspired fashion designs. Julia described a mix of European, Asian and American culture intertwined in her British heritage brand, while adding her own JS edge with the way fabrics are combined and the intense colourways used that are becoming her trademark.

As for her novels, she describes being inspired by the iconic parts of the world in her location settings.

“I have always adored the beauty and bold colours of nature and the idea of creating a microcosm. I created a huge Utopian world in the settings and descriptions in my novels. For example, the Colorado Mountains, the British Lake Districts, the Cornish Beaches and the Great Plains of Australia feature with new name titles. I also built in elements of France and Barbados; tropical environments and places with a sense of utopia and all this richness of animal-life”.

In terms of Julia’s love for grandeur this is once again reflected in her unveiling of a stunning piece of clothing from her ‘Red Bond’ collection when she showcased her upcoming summer designs at an exclusive event in Stoke Park Spa and Hotel (the very place where movies such as James Bond and Layer Cake were set) to exclusive clients and celebrities.

Julia clarified where her fashion label sits compared to the rest of the industry, contrasting her own style to the likes of Victoria Beckham.

“Victoria Beckham’s style is very architectural, with sharp lines and everything based on simplicity. The Julia Suzuki brand focuses more on glamour, drama, curves and femininity with elements of drama, in a totally wearable way.”

Julia also didn’t hold back when describing how she feels living a celebrity lifestyle in Britain and where her motivations lie when it comes to designing.

“I feel that Americans dream big and are open-minded whereas the British can be quite negative and closed minded. There’s this attitude that you are not allowed to love yourself here and if you do it comes across as conceited. In America, it’s encouraged to wish big and share that.”

“My fashion range is mainly formal wear. Currently, we are expanding with jackets and jeans but these combine with Couture fabrics such as leather, suede and lace, which is a signature of the brand. We have also moved into exclusive lingerie and swimwear”.

Julia described that she doesn’t want to live a life where the limelight becomes everything and revealed that she has known many celebrities/successful business people become depressed when fame becomes everything.

“The lifestyle is just a bonus. There’s no point in living in a big home if you don’t have a bigger personal purpose. Without the goal to inspire through what you do you can get carried away by the need for attention, and that can become shallow and many celebrities end up that way and unfortunately they become depressed.”

Also, she explained that being a celebrity is a whole different world and has been lucky enough to ease into the new lifestyle gradually because it is based on what she does and her talent rather a more superficial aspect which can be the case.

“As your profile and vision/goals grow you find that you grow out of the normal and mundane things in life and need to be around like-minded people. You are exposed to a different level of experience. You become excited at being around creative and high-level mind-sets. You become better at extracting emotional value from positive people and how they deal with the negative parts of the world as well, which you need to learn how to do.”

Julia went on to describe how she feels after shifting into the world of celebrity and the struggles she has faced in the public eye. This includes the controversial story that broke in the tabloids earlier this year involving DIY SOS star Nick Knowles after the pair were spotted having dinner together in Camden.

“Being in the public eye is a whole other world. You must be so careful what you say and what you post because of the consequences and the speculation that it can cause.”

“There was a recent incident in the papers and all over YouTube where I was seen with Nick Knowles. The press kept pushing that we were dating. I was at dinner with him as a friend in a restaurant discussing my designs and business plans and connections and mutual support and all of a sudden it was a big love affair.”

That’s not the only thing Julia is aware of as a celebrity. Julia went on to describe that having a love life is something that is tougher, especially when it comes to finding a man that can deal with profile.

“Relationships are a struggle in many cases, but as an entrepreneur and public celebrity brand, you need a guy who can handle it.”

“I’ve had experiences where relationships used to pull me down a bit. I need a guy who gets the pressure of how busy I am. It is not like 9-5 work but a completely different sort of life. I need all the hours in the day, and often weekends and what it takes to get the job done, and to speak to who I need to without constant questions or demands, or guilt.”

Julia even described previous relationships that broke by saying: “it became obvious that the guys need to be more self-assured and balanced and most importantly uplifting. I need a man who won’t constantly get paranoid and keep questioning who is phoning or what I am doing, it is just additional pressure that drains your drive.”

“It is a different world so I need someone with exactly the same mindset and big ambition, that way you can achieve a huge amount together, to know you are a solid team.”

We are looking forward to what Julia has in store this summer, as it is set to be a very exciting second half of the year!