SPRING HILL — Fashion designer Isaac Johan is dressing women in finery across two cultures as the native Puerto Rican attempts to establish his name in the continental U.S. from a small perch in Spring Hill.
The soft-spoken 25-year-old artist-cum-seamstress opened a spot early this year in Towne Square Mall. The enclave frequently serves as an incubator for small retail endeavors en route to greater fame, noted Richard Sanbenero, its marketing director. Sanbenero envisions such a route for Johan, “a very, very competent young man,” he said.
Johan specializes in wedding-party gowns, gala evening wear and pageant couture, imbued with the essence of his teacher and mentor, Carlota Alfaro, known by some as “Puerto Rico’s grande dame of fashion.” She accepted Johan for study at age 15 at Carla Alfaro College, a prestigious institute for fashion design in San Juan. He’s been designing and sewing commercially out of her studio for four years.
April’s prom season was Johan’s busiest here, so far. He winged back to Puerto Rico briefly, where he fashioned 19 gowns for its May prom season and for a clientele who already knows his work.
Flowing lines, swishy fabrics, beads, sequins or lace embellishments generally characterize Johan’s designs. Every page of his portfolio reveals a creative neckline, shoulder treatment, gauzy insert, crinolined hem or other creative inclusion.
“I didn’t know how (the business) worked here,” he said recently. “In Puerto Rico, they go crazy with fancy. Here, they’re more relaxed. They want only a little sparkle.”
Johan designs for each particular body, “to make (customers) look their best,” he explained. And he listens.
“Someone will say, ‘I don’t want to show my arms,’ or ‘I want to show my shoulders,’” he said. He encourages them to bring pictures and have ideas.
Johan and his clients sketch out a design on their first meeting, and he takes measurements. By the second get-together, Johan has produced the garment in crinoline for fitting on the customer. He stitches up in the gown in the chosen fabric — without closures — for a final fitting. Alterations made, the garment is readied for debut.
He can turn out a gown in a day.
“When I saw the first season at age 13 of Project Runway, I watched how they created a dress in one day. I was shocked. I wanted to do that,” Johan said.
Two clients from Ocala, who’d discovered his designs on social media, gave him the chance.
“I didn’t want them to drive so far many times,” he said. “‘Come, like, at 9 a.m.,’ I told them. Bring fabric. Bring shoes.”
Each Ocala dress was completed in a day.
Johan’s prom gowns start at about $250, custom gowns at $300.
Nancy Richey, of Spring Hill, sought Johan’s expertise for a mother-of-the-bride’s dress.
“He imported some lace from Puerto Rico,” Richey said. “(The sewing) took less than two weeks. It is everything I imagined it to be.”
She added, “Of the dresses I saw online, the kind he designed, he was cheaper.”
In Puerto Rico, Johan’s clients are devoted, returning to his studio for every special event. He is aiming for a client list here by fall, in time for holiday party dresses.
Mall spokesman Sanbenero said he “discovered” Johan when another mall tenant sponsored a wedding show this year that included his fashions. “That showed me how talented he was,” said Sanbenero, “beautiful, beautiful local talent.”
Contact the writer at graybethn@earthlink.net.
More information about fashion designer Isaac Johan is available on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. He can be contacted at (352) 428-5444. Towne Square Mall, 3021 Commercial Way, Spring Hill is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
https://www.tampabay.com/hernando/puerto-rican-fashion-designer-stakes-out-business-in-spring-hill-20190629/
2019-06-29 15:58:00Z
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