Pedro Andrade in an exclusive talk after the fashion show

Well, it's been a while since I wrote here, but I believe that for such a special moment as the one we experienced last Friday, it deserved a different exchange of ideas. A sincere approach, a conversation between two friends that revealed a bit of the experience of someone who ended SPFW with a runway show at Pacaembu Stadium.

On the night of last Friday, the brand PIET, under the creative direction of Pedro Andrade, showcased its Farmers League collection, concluding SPFW 59. The historic show took place at Pacaembu Stadium, a location filled with history that hosted memorable games, iconic concerts like Paul McCartney in 1993, and other significant events, but for the first time it hosted a fashion show.

On the afternoon of last Saturday, after a casual chat about life, travel, and watches (laughs), at the NOTTHESAMO Café, located on the upper floor of the PIET Flagship, I invited Pedro for an interview about a post-show conversation.

Perhaps you have wondered, "Why hasn't NTS published anything about the show until now, just reposts in the stories?" Well, we thought that post-show content would be just as interesting as pre and during. Therefore, Pedro and I sat on the benches located in front of the Luisa Strina Art Gallery, on the same street as the PIET Flagship, and had a good conversation about what this moment meant for the brand, perspectives, and the future.

The interview is accompanied by a selection of images made by our collaborator and friend Gabi Lisboa, with records from before the show, behind the scenes, and details.

Brunol: Well, where do we start? (laughs) I know. After all the chaos post-show, how are you feeling?

Pedro Andrade: Yeah, how am I feeling... (laughs) Well, I think I entered a state of... a kind of peace, like, very big. I haven't managed to look at photos, mentions, messages yet. I haven't been able to stop to read and watch the interviews, read what people are saying, see posts. I haven't seen anything.

Brunol: I can imagine, you were with your phone dead until a little while ago (laughs).

Pedro Andrade: That's right, I think I had such a huge adrenaline rush. It's not that I mean anxiety or anything like that, but it was very, very difficult to make all that happen.

And then, just yesterday, I started to relax. So I'm in a state of relaxation, you know? Today I'm taking the day to relax.

Brunol: Yes, you can tell. You seem calm.

Pedro Andrade: I think I'll start to have a sense of what resonated in this show on Monday, probably, you know?

Brunol: What was the importance of this show for you?

Pedro Andrade: There are several layers of importance. I think for the brand, it’s consolidation. And for me, for my career as well. But there's a thing that the show helped me give a response. To a lot of people who keep talking, giving their opinions about my work. Which I don't think is bad. I think people have the right to speak and to question. And I think it's good that people question. Start with this feeling, this movement of critical sense.

But at the same time, I noticed that we went through some moments this year and at the end of last year. There were some questions that I knew I was on the right path. But I wanted to respond to people in the right way. I didn't want to get into a confrontation. Like, ah... It's... cultural appropriation. Or, like... It's... ah... this brand talks about democratization but charges a lot for the garment. You know?

Brunol: Yes, we’ve been closely following everything that's happened with Piet and your work in general.

Pedro Andrade: Yes, and my way of responding to all this was by democratizing through access. Through information, through knowledge. So, in this show, there are many messages. I think it brings people closer to PIET, in a clearer way. More vivid. More human.

I knew I needed to shake up national fashion. So it was a necessary show. Not just for my career.

Brunol: I liked that answer.

Brunol: Streetwear in Brazil is still something new/small but is taking shape, with many brands emerging, new launch strategies, etc. But when we step out of that bubble, it seems like we step out of our comfort zone. Do you think all this has happened because PIET somehow managed to "break the bubble"?

Pedro Andrade: Yes, it's been 13 years of career. But it broke all of a sudden. PIET was a brand very well-known in the niche. It ended up staying within that bubble. That avant-garde of fashion, streetwear. At times we saw that bubble being broken, when we started with the Oakley work. And even other things, like controversies, the one with the pants at Renner, for example. Those things help to break the bubble.

And then when that happens we get opinions from people who haven't followed our work for a long time. And people who don't consume fashion. People who don't understand our discourse. People who have never heard of me. People who will judge me by my face.

Brunol: Yes, and how do you explain that to those people? It's tough, right?

Pedro Andrade: There's something I've never understood. That is the weight of leaving your niche.

You are no longer the darling of your niche. You are a target for a lot of things. And most of the time, the target is in a bad way. It’s not about praise anymore (laughs), it's about people criticizing you. And saying what they want. And thinking they have the right to speak. I think it really has to do with having broken the bubble.

Brunol: One detail of this show that many people commented on, the flags. How did the idea of parading with flags that carried the hate you/the brand received come about?

Pedro Andrade: We had this collection full of messages. It already has a bunch of subliminal messages of criticism. It has a kind of sharp sense of humor.

It was our chance to speak and have a very large exposure. This collection needs to be talked about now, it's the right moment, thinking with my team. There are a lot of people talking about us. Many people are saying good things, but there are also many people saying bad things.

And one of the things... You are my friend, you know. We laugh about this thing of people thinking I'm a mega rich kid. That I come from a wealthy family. That I live in Pinheiros. That people tell me to get out of Matheus Gros. It’s a funny thing.

Brunol: I think that’s one of the funniest parts (laughs).

Pedro Andrade: So what do we do? How do we take this lightly? My team and I took many comments that people made about me. And we brought that to the show. Because I think that’s also part of PIET's story.

Are you going to call me posh? I’m the one saying posh (laughs).

Brunol: I liked the "Speak in Portuguese" — I thought that was really cool (laughs).

Pedro Andrade: I think people also don’t understand that the English is because the brand is being internationalized.

Brunol: Man, there are many brands that don’t necessarily have English as their native language but use English in the communication of their brands/projects because they know it’s a global language. What do you think about that?

Pedro Andrade: In our team, we always talk about this. Many people wouldn't like Jacquemus as much if they only communicated in French. Or would like Visvim or Kapital, Comme if they only spoke in Japanese.

Whether you like it or not, it’s a universal language. In most countries, you either go, or they speak English as a second language or as a complementary language, that people can communicate.

Brunol: Exactly!

Pedro Andrade: My communication in Portuguese, for my brand that has a larger sales operation outside the country than in Brazil, it doesn’t make sense.

It’s guidance from my PR, from abroad, it’s guidance from my showroom and the company that represents me, that I should communicate in English.

And those who are uncomfortable can hit the translation button and translate to Portuguese or translate to the language that needs to be spoken (laughs).

Brunol: How are we going to internationalize without communicating, right? I think that’s already a great start for a question many ask.

Pedro Andrade: Yes! People say, "We need to take Brazil abroad because not many brands are going there" or "Why don’t I see such and such brand abroad?" Perhaps because those people are forgetting how important language and communication structure is. We need to communicate globally.

Brunol: I believe it was the largest audience in the history of São Paulo Fashion Week. Do you have any notion of the proportion your work has achieved? What it is reaching in recent months, in the last year?

Pedro Andrade: I had no idea that this was going to happen. Especially because I spent the last two and a half years on this brand internationalization project. So I focused a lot on how to be out there in a concise, consolidated way. With good stores selling, with global collabs. I really pushed hard for that to happen.

Brunol: You had an audience of over 5 thousand people watching a fashion show, that’s impressive, especially when we’re talking about fashion in Brazil. Very wild.

Pedro Andrade: The public invitation was a huge thermometer for me. There I could release this and see the people's eagerness. Not necessarily to consume my product, that for me was the greatest truth about the discourse I make and that people believe and don’t believe.

They criticize me because when I say that democratization of fashion doesn’t start with the product and actually with knowledge and access. People need to have access and knowledge. It’s almost us being didactic and educational. That’s the first part, and the show sold out thousands of tickets in literally two minutes showed that our discourse is correct because people were there for access, to see, they didn’t do it for a drop to get a free t-shirt on the street. They didn’t do it for the hype. They did it to be there, to see, to know, to understand, and that is very beautiful.

Pedro Andrade: We had quotas inside for all the best fashion and design colleges in the country. We gave over 100 tickets to each university and the students were super engaged. All of them went.

We had people from social work there, helping us, being assistants. So it was a show that showed that Brazilian fashion is thirsty for access and that sometimes it is too elitist where it shouldn't be and it’s not about price, it's about information and access for sure.

Brunol: It’s what I say, you don’t need to have to consume a brand. You don’t necessarily need to have the product. I consider myself a consumer of several brands that I don’t own anything (laughs). I like to follow, I like the publications, communication, etc. So I think that’s the direction.

Pedro Andrade: You’re right. In fact, most of the brands that we consume globally, that we follow, that we admire, that we watch the drops, that we look at what’s happening to them, we consume that. We repost that.

Not necessarily are we consuming the product in the form of purchase. Everybody loves, for example, Louis Vuitton, Loewe, these big brands. Not everyone goes there every week, every month, and buys a 10 thousand, 20 thousand reais piece. But at the same time, you don’t stop admiring that and you don’t stop legitimizing that, you can’t delegitimize and think that it's wrong or that there’s a problem. There’s an abyss in this discourse between the reality of democratization and the product.

Brunol: For sure! What are the next steps for Piet?

Pedro Andrade: We continue with the plan to internationalize, we continue with this plan very strongly. A more conscious expansion here in Brazil, more selective, more physical spaces, and more activations.

Don't change a winning team (laughs), I think that’s kind of it. I think we’re doing our job right and there's not much to change. We will maintain this DNA with global collabs, there are more shows this year, there are activations outside the country, there’s a lot to happen.

Brunol: Very good, man! I think that’s it, thank you!

Pedro Andrade: Did you get all the audio? How are you going to do it now?

Brunol: I don’t even know (laughs).