Style Q&A With Fleur du Mal Founder, Jennifer Zuccarini
The Fleur du Mal founder on the long road to launching her label, the advice that kept her focused, and how she actually wears lingerie day to day.
Ava Isabel
Long before lingerie showed up on city streets, Jennifer Zuccarini was already dressing that way, layering vintage slips and bustiers over jeans or skirts. That instinct has carried her through more than two decades in the business. She led design for Victoria’s Secret Intimates, co-founded Kiki de Montparnasse, and in 2012 launched Fleur du Mal. The label has since grown into ready-to-wear, swimwear and lifestyle, but its premise hasn’t moved: lingerie is meant to be worn out, not kept out of sight.
We met her at the Fleur du Mal store in SoHo. We talked about the years she spent waiting to launch her own label, what building it taught her about commitment, how social media changed the job, and how she styles lingerie into everyday looks.
Jennifer's OOTD
Ava: Walk me through your look today.
Jennifer: I’m wearing things from our fall collection. This is our Ruched V-neck shirt, and we did it intentionally so you can show your bra strap, you can unbutton it a little bit and have it off your shoulder. I’m wearing this little tailored skirt, that has shorts built into it. So it’s great when you’re running up stairs or on the subway or getting on a Citi Bike. And I’m wearing our Eden embroidery bra.
Ava: You named the brand after Charles Baudelaire’s poetry collection Les Fleurs du Mal. How does that dark, romantic, and rebellious spirit continue to filter into your designs today?
Jennifer: I was really inspired by the duality of the name. I love the dichotomy of something that’s beautiful, but also maybe has a darker side to it. I love mixing masculine and feminine. That’s why we do a lot of things that have tailoring, but also these very soft feminine pieces. I love bringing those two worlds together, the sensual and the earthly. So the name really resonated with me for all of those reasons.
Ava: Having served as Design Director for Victoria’s Secret Intimates and built Fleur du Mal, you’ve operated at virtually every scale of fashion. What is the biggest lesson you brought from mass retail into luxury direct-to-consumer?
Jennifer: What I really learned from Victoria’s Secret, the biggest lingerie brand in the world, was how they operated. I learned a lot about how an organization like that functions day to day and how the teams were structured. I also learned what Americans want. I always felt like everyone wants the most beautiful, amazing, intricate things. But no, people want things that are generally more practical and easy to care for. Not everybody wants what I want. That was a big lesson for me, but it didn’t necessarily change how I design and create products. One thing Victoria’s Secret does super well is they take an idea and they make it so much bigger. They really get behind one thing. And I think for younger designers, that’s harder to do because you’re focused on a whole collection and not just one product.
Ava: What was the tipping point when you knew you had to take the leap and start Fleur du Mal? Looking back, what was the hardest part?
Jennifer: I always knew I wanted to start my own brand from when I was a child. So for me, it was just finding the right time. I struggled with it, because a lot of people start their brand when they’re really young or maybe when they first graduate school. But I wanted to learn. I wanted to be exposed to other things and learn from other people before I started my brand. So I went to Victoria’s Secret and co-founded Kiki de Montparnasse. Once I felt like I had learned everything I could learn there (of course, there’s always more to learn), I was almost feeling bored and stagnant. And that’s when I knew it was now or never. I just couldn’t wait any longer. I had to do it. The hardest thing is really making that leap and doing it full time. I was working on my business plan and I was sketching, but once I actually had to make the full commitment, I was all in.
Ava: What did it teach you about yourself?
Jennifer: I used to have issues with commitment in some ways. I really value freedom. I always felt when I was younger, anything that I was doing, the next day I could leave. I could leave any job, I could leave any relationship, and I would be totally fine. When I started my company and I had people invest in me, all of a sudden I felt like, “Oh, I can’t leave this.” I have to be very committed to this because people are depending on me. I have a team that depends on me. I pay salaries. I learned that I was able to commit myself fully, and it shifted who I was.
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