PUTTING MOROCCO ON THE MAP: CASABLANCA
The Parisian company, specialising in sports-inspired luxury fashion, was founded in 2018 by Charaf Tajer, the brand's creative director. Based in London, the company distributes its products in more than 200 points of sale.
- Tajer's pieces feature relaxed tailoring combined with a wild tone under the relief of sporty silhouettes - the perfect combination of elegant and comfortable.
- The brand began to gain repercussion and media coverage thanks to the silk shirt, its star garment, which is available from 700 euros, depending on the model and print.
Through high-waisted trousers, jackets, joggers, oversized shirts and a large number of garments, Tajer mimics his Moroccan roots along with his place of residence, which is Paris.
However, this is not synonymous with his clothes being classified by origin. Indeed, what he demonstrates with his garments is the constant search for a multicultural communion.
The rebelliousness and irreverence of his designs, all of which are united by the sporting inspiration of the classic tennis club, combine the essence of the creator himself, born in Paris - where the entire creative process of the house takes place - and manufactured in Casablanca - the place where the designer's family is based.
It is precisely in Casablanca, where his parents continue to work in an atelier, a place where it can be found those great craftsmen capable of adapting Charaf's ideas into delicate garments.
"With Casablanca, I have always wanted to make my creative direction clear and show who I am and what my aesthetic is like 100%," says Tajer.
Casablanca is based on a luxurious but very relaxed aesthetic. With high doses of retro sports references in the pattern making, but with an exquisite dedication through the fabrics used in each of its creations. Sweatshirts, pyjama-effect outfits and elaborate denim - with prints that evoke precious and exotic places.
The prints are clearly reminiscent of the nineties aesthetic that catapulted Gianni Versace, but Charaf's designs have a purpose that goes beyond inspiration from the past.
The designer visualizes the average Casablanca man as ageless. As such, he intends to convey these designs with the works of art that colour his garments.
Designs include references to Chinese and Japanese mythology -through dragons and infinite waves printed on shirts- jackets and trousers, as well as much more pop references with large hotels and swimming pools in the purest Hockey art style.
On a chromatic level they make reference to their native Morocco - with orange and reddish tones - but which are intermingled with small doses of vitamins, visible through blue beaches and tropical landscapes.
The real attraction of Casablanca is its unpredictable theme. It doesn't abandon palettes that have already been seen in Versace, Gucci or Dolce & Gabbana, but its essence lies in the freshness and joviality it gives to the wearer.
Colombian singer, J Balvin, is one of the celebrities who clearly makes a statement by posing under this brand. We have also seen it on other artists such as Kendall Jenner, C. Tangana, Travis Scott, Phareel or the famous producer, DJ Khaled.
The company operates internationally in countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, as well as the United States and Australia.
Moreover, Casablanca also sells its garments in more than 200 points of sale through department stores such as Browns, Galleries Lafayette, Selfridges or Maxfield, and on marketplaces such as Farfetch, Luisa Via Roma or Lyst, among others.
The fusion of elements is the result of Casablanca and what has catapulted it into the spotlight of the men's industry.
The Franco-Moroccan label integrates all the keys to success that marked the reign of streetwear a few seasons ago. But if there is one thing Charaf Tajer excels at, it is mastering the rules of this new masculinity.
