If Jim Thompson were alive today, Gerald Mazzalovo -- the Thai silk company's chief executive officer -- would want to ask him questions about his multifarious life. Not only did the late designer and founder of the Jim Thompson brand live through a tumultuous political era -- alternately as architect, spy, collector of antiques -- but he maintained relationships with local revolutionaries, European and American socialites and A-list celebrities, from Ho Chi Minh to Truman Capote.
"I'd prepare myself well, if I had an appointment with him," Mazzalovo quips.
Nonetheless, the French-Italian expert in the luxe industry, who took over the reins at Jim Thompson in 2016, challenges assumptions of a wistful, nostalgic branding.
As he attended the presentation of Jim Thompson's new collections of home-furnishing fabrics in Paris last week, Mazzalovo reaffirmed his ambition to push the company into becoming the "first global Southeast Asian luxury brand".
In Bangkok, the refurbishing of the flagship store in Siam Paragon last year as well as that of a large showroom on Surawong Road were welcome facelifts, although Mazzalovo now has his sights set on boosting exports.
Jim Thompson's Sagano design, as part of the 2018 Bardo collection.
"Jim Thompson has the product quality, the know-how, the heritage," he says. "We want to compete with the best global brands."
Drawing inspiration exclusively from Southeast Asian culture, the company seeks to bring the best from one world to another -- much like what Jim Thompson himself did, his successor adds. Indeed, in the mid-twentieth century, the American businessman travelled to New York to show his designs to Edna Woolman Chase, then-editor of Vogue. His vibrant palette of colours, fuchsia pinks and turquoise blues, captivated audiences.
Every Colour Under The Sun, one of the brand's latest collections of home-furnishing fabrics, was conceived as a tribute to Jim Thompson's erstwhile creations.
The saturated colours, added to the sheen and iridescence of the Thai silk, are part of the brand's strong visual identity, says Ou Baholyodhin, Jim Thompson's current creative director.
This year's fabrics come in hundreds of hues, revisited from Jim Thompson's personal and company archives.
"The vibrant colourings of the 60s and 70s are definitely making a comeback," adds Ou, who still prefers to conceive his designs by putting himself in Jim Thompson's shoes rather than by following trends.
Although he has come a long way from the minimalism he cultivated prior to working for the brand, the designer injects his personal tastes in each collection, whether it be through combinations of colours -- among his favourites are gold, black and white as well as turquoise and orange -- and individual motifs.
The Bardo collection's Kunming curtains were achieved using a warp-printing technique.
His Bardo collection, an homage to local traditions and arts, is yet another reference to the company's original textile works -- several motifs and prints having also been dug out from piles of old materials and refreshed for a more contemporary feel.
Evocative names such as Khemarin, Chevalier and Kunming, tinted with exoticism, were given to the singular designs, most of them hand-painted and manufactured using traditional techniques. Warp-printing creates a hazy, dreamlike effect, while ikat weaving, though an ancient method, brings a resolutely modern feel to Jim Thompson's earlier bird motifs.
Alongside the two main Jim Thompson collections, British designer Richard Smith presented his blue- and white-toned creations for the No.9 Jim Thompson line inspired by his travels in Greece and Turkey. Famed interior designer Gert Voorjans -- known to most for his work on the Dries Van Noten stores around the globe -- was also invited to create a capsule home furnishing collection for the spring and summer. A playful mix of painterly floral motifs and colourful stripes, the Belgian designer's fabrics convey Western influences, from Delft tiles to the paintings of Henri Matisse.
"Working with Gert was wonderful. He is a perfect fit for Jim Thompson, having the same sort of niche, boutique aesthetic," Ou says about the collaboration. "It was like working with a dear friend." As the luxury market is shifting fast, Ou, who presents the collections each year, sees the uniqueness of the Jim Thompson brand deriving from the fact that all operations are executed in-house.
Birds were a favourite motif of Jim Thompson's, according to designer Ou Baholyodhin.
"We do everything ourselves, from nurturing the silk worms and cocoons, to reeling the yarns, to dying and weaving the fabrics, to our distribution and communication strategies," he adds.
The attention to preserving traditional craftsmanship as well as the brand's humanistic values meets consumers' increasing demand for authenticity and emotion.
In recent years, showrooms have popped up overseas -- in Paris, New York, London and Munich. Despite the heavy rain last week, visitors and passersby seemed captivated by the window displays created by Douglas Little, which adorned the small boutique tucked in a Left Bank street off Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
"We are inspired by the past, but we remain resolutely contemporary," Mazzalovo says.
As of late, the brand has been experimenting with innovations, including jacquard scarves and leather bags manufactured in Thailand and in Europe, while working with young designers and artists. Although Jim Thompson has a growing presence in the food-and-beverage industry, Mazzalavo avoids the term "lifestyle brand".
"We are a brand of culture," he says, likening Jim Thompson to the maisons -- houses specialising in couture or traditional know-how of the highest quality.
As luxury consumers become more discerning, more concerned with being exceptional and with sustainability than with mere exclusivity by price, the Frenchman, who's held top positions at Ferragamo, Loewe and Bally, believes Jim Thompson only has the best to offer.
Of course, such repositioning does not happen in one season, or even in five years -- the period for which Mazzalovo conceived an initial rebranding strategy.
"In 10, 15 years, we'll be the Asian Hermès."
The collections are available at the Jim Thompson Home Furnishings showroom on Surawong Road in Bangkok.
Famed Belgian interior designer Gert Vorjaans guest-designs a colourful collection for Jim Thompson.
