There is one Fashion Designer leaving his mark all over the world. “Berny Martin” The award-winning fashion Designer has been featured in numerous publications including GQ, Nike, BET, MTV, and People Magazine, Many celebrities have rocked his fashion and he has put on shows from Paris to the Midwest. Born on the Island of Haiti in the Caribbean,
Berny Martin came to the United States at a very young age and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. In addition, he would go on to attend Purdue University, earning a tech degree and becoming a computer engineer. After two years in the corporate world.
Berny realized that it wasn’t for him so he focused his attention on becoming a fashion designer. I asked Berny what made him want to get into fashion? Berny stated “The world of fashion is not far from being an engineer. We knew computers would become a part of everyday life. That’s what a cell phone is pretty much, a computer. I knew that fashion was gonna be heavily dependent on technology also. It helped me sustain who I am in fashion today.”
Berny formed his own fashion imprint line “Catou” The name derives from his grandma’s nickname. After doing his first solo fashion show, Berny established Midwest fashion week in 2006. Berny stated “I had multiple people calling me from all over about my show. I was saying to myself how can we unite the spirit of the Midwest through fashion and that led me to organize Midwest Fashion Week?”
Berny wanted something where the midwest could identify themselves as midwestern but have their own sense of culture and spirit through fashion. Midwest Fashion Week was recognized by Time Magazine as the best fashion week in 2012.
When asked when it’s all said and done, and you are long gone from the earth. What is it that you want the people to know about Berny Martin? “That I really enjoyed helping others by being a philanthropist to my community. It’s not about money. Money comes and goes. It’s not about the parties. We get drunk and forget what happens. I want to be remembered for passing the torch.”
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