FASHION
ELI MIZRAHI’S MÔNOT IS MAKING WAVES
JULY 28, 2020
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WORDS
by KRISTOPHER FRASER
PHOTOS
COURTESY of ELI MIZRAHI
Nothing has ever stopped creative consultant turned fashion designer Eli Mizrahi. His parents doubt couldn’t stop him. Getting in trouble for not wearing his school uniform couldn’t stop him. His lack of a formal education couldn’t stop him. Above all else, a global pandemic couldn’t stop him from launching a contemporary fashion brand that has already been worn by some of the top models, including Kate Moss, Alek Wek, and Canidce Swanepoel.
His new brand, christened Mônot, has not only found a fanbase among the top models of the world, but he has already dressed Grammy winner Lizzo, and the brand has been picked up by top retailers including Browns, Harvey Nichols, Luisaviaroma, Tsum, and Moda Operandi. Don’t think Mizrahi is an overnight success though. His line might be new, but his trajectory toward making this happen has been years in the making.
Mizrahi was originally born in Beirut, Lebanon. He grew up in Monaco, and at age 13 he moved to New York City. The middle child of his siblings, he found himself constantly criticized by his parents because of how rebellious he was. After getting kicked out of his private school for not adhering to the dress code, he went to James Madison High School, which at the time had one of the worst graduation rates in the country and was in a neighborhood with a very high crime rate. He wanted to prove to his parents and everyone around him he was capable of defeating the odds, even when the table was stacked against him. Not only did he graduate high school and get into Baruch College, but he was also expected to be on a pre-law track. However, he not so politely informed his parents his dream was not to be a lawyer, so he wasn’t going.
Back in the day, American Airlines had an Around the Globe program for high school graduates where they could travel for a year by paying a flat fee and go anywhere in the world along an American Airlines route. The minute you touched down on American soil the ticket was void, so Mizrahi packed his bare minimum underwear essentials along with a camera, and decided to leave and travel internationally for a year. After coming home to America, he got into an argument with his family over not wanting to be involved in the family business, which led to him being cut off.
“After that I had to sit down and have a talk with myself,” Mizrahi said. “I said, listen Eli, you’re not going to go back and beg. I can be a bit stubborn, but in the best way possible. I decided I had to stand up for myself. So, I went out to New York and I met a lot of people in fashion and entertainment from Hollywood producers to models.”
Alek Wek for Monôt
Mizrahi began to wonder if there was a lane for him in the worlds of fashion and entertainment where he could connect brands and talent. He found success in playing matchmaker between talent and celebrities, which led to him pitching different projects and consulting for brands for over ten years. Despite his success helping other people with their brands, no one ever thought that he would launch his own, but, as usual, Mizrahi decided to prove everyone wrong.
“On June 19, 2019, I woke up and said you know what, even though I’ve been very successful with consulting, starting a fashion line is a dream of mine,” Mizrahi said. “If I didn’t pursue it now, then I’ll never get the chance and be mad I didn’t try.”
In January, Mizrahi’s dad passed away reminding the entrepreneur that nothing in life is guaranteed. Mizrahi proceeded to launch his first collection for September 2019 and considers it when he was “basically born.”
After shopping around for pattern makers, he eventually found a woman in his birth country of Beirut that produced a beautiful first sample for him. He hopped on a plane to Beirut to meet her and worked with her to finish all the samples. They found a Syrian refugee to start sewing the collection who recruited other Syrian refugees to work on the project, and thus Mizrahi’s first collection was born.
For his first lookbook Mizrahi recruited a transgender model and two Black models, which was met with pushback because people told him featuring these types of models wouldn't sell. As soon as he released the lookbook, Mizrahi got phone calls and emails with everyone telling him how brilliant his concept was, which he just shrugged off and said, “Three days ago you thought I was crazy, now you think I’m a genius. I just know to go with my gut.”
When Mizrahi was shooting the collection it was the middle of New York Fashion Week, so it was too late for him to get on the schedule to do a presentation. Instead, he decided to show in Paris by inviting a very select group of editors and industry friends to view a lookbook that was created to look like an art collector book that had to be touched with white gloves.
While Mizrahi received positive reception for the collection, he still had trouble finding PR agencies to work with him because they didn’t quite feel he was ready yet. He ended up becoming his own PR and marketing manager. Luckily, his model friends with millions of followers were posting about the collection and that led to him getting the attention of top department store and e-commerce buyers. Originally, Mizrahi didn’t plan on selling season one of his collection and saw it as strictly a preview launch, but even though he had some buyers turn him down, he still got a notable list of orders.
Although he’s enjoying success with his line, Mizrahi is by no means satisfied. “I’m still not at a level where I can say I’m pleased with my designs,” he said. “I’m really never satisfied, which is a good thing. I’m always hungry for more.”
