Interview by Yolanda Sangweni via Essence.com
Halle Berry has been the face for many luxury labels (remember those Versace ads?), but now the actress is branching off into a fashion venture of her own. The lingerie lover is teaming up with 80-year-old French intimates brand Scandale Paris for a 10-piece capsule collection ranging from $7 for underwear to $18 for bras. Tres cheap, no? The best part is that the line is available at Target, or shall we say –– Tarjay. Let Halle, the new Scandale co-owner, tell you herself.
ESSENCE.com: Why Target? It’s very affordable. It’s for the everyday woman. Why that brand?
HALLE BERRY: That’s why, because I have over the years liked some amazing pieces of lingerie. They were a small fortune, and most of them given to me because I refuse to pay $200 for a bra, but companies have sent them to me and I’ve enjoyed them. I thought this is great that somebody sent to me, but can real women really go and spend $200 on one bra? It never quite made sense.
But I love lingerie, and like I said in the top, I have friends that wear the same $200 bra until it falls apart, and I thought something’s not right here. If you can partner with Target, and you manufacture with La Perla because he knows how to do it, if he can make a quality product and we can sell it for $16 at Target, and it’s something that’s on the level of any great product, it’s not going to fall apart, that’s quality, and I thought that’s a win for us and it’s a win for the consumer because they can have a collection of bras now. You don’t have to wear one until it falls apart, you can wear a different one everyday and you haven’t broken your bank.
That for me was really important to offer that to women.
ESSENCE.com: Is this only going to be sold at Target?
BERRY: It’s only going to be sold in Target, it’s just we’re starting sort of small with our signature collection, and then we’re going to roll it out. We’re starting in some of their bigger stores to launch, and then we’ll go out into all the smaller stores with more. As we’ll roll into the spring with a whole spring line that’s a different colorway than these colors are. Then we’ll have a different collection for summer, then a different collection for fall. Then we’ll go in with different styles then what’s standing, trying to be seasonal at the same time.
ESSENCE.com: Was this lingerie line developed at home?
BERRY: Yes. Being married to him, honestly, he has held me to a standard because he’s from there (Paris) and so he’s very picky about, you know, if I don’t have on something quite right he’s like, “What’s this?” Okay. It’s that time of the month so I chose some red. In three days, I’ll be back. He holds me to it, and that’s nice. It’s nice to have a man that notices and cares.
ESSENCE.com: And appreciates it.
BERRY: …and appreciates it, yes, and appreciates it.
ESSENCE.com: Will Molly Woods be wearing Scandale next season?