Anything in your life is possible.
Xander is inspired by the world around him. His brand reflects his love for nature using elements of wood, rattan, semi precious stones and mother of pearl detailing.
Xander firmly believes that: Anything in life is possible. No matter what your background, you just need to focus on what you want, believe you already have it and then you will create it.
Sound interesting?!
We'd love to hear from you! DM us @XanderKostromaLifetsyle
MEET OUR PRODUCTION + LOGISTICS TEAM
MEET WEBSITE SPECIALIST + MODEL
All design and development starts in Xander's home studio in Portugal. Once a sample is finalized, production is passed over to his friend Lydia who's based in Handan City. Lydia also works from her home studio. She's a young business owner and mum, and when her children are asleep, she makes jewellery. Xander met Lydia though an old contact when he was working in buying and merchandising many years ago, they became friends immediately.
Once production is finished, everything is shipped to the warehouse in Swansea. Tory, the Assistant Manager, is also a young mum who picks, lovingly packs and sends out all orders with help from her Assistant Sam. All of the styles are shot by Amy, our model from her back garden and inside her home in Northamptonshire. Xander met Amy on Instagram shortly after launching his collection.
Xander and Tory are good friends for more than 15+ years! They met and bonded over their love for music at day festival in Swansea. Xander met Sam when he was around 16 years old and, after growing up on separate paths, they re-connected late 2020 when Sam joined the team...and as for Moh, he's a new recruit into the business. He joined us mid-2021 and has been a crucial team member for the growth and development of our website.
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
Xander was born into a single parent, working class family in Swansea. Aged just 16, he found himself homeless. Thick skinned, he knew that his first priority was for him to earn a living. He found a job working nights as a pot washer at a local restaurant, while during the days, he continued his studies in school. A year later, he left the restaurant to work in the coffee shop at Marks & Spencer's.
Xander was promoted to store Visual Merchandiser which was where his interest in fashion began. Moreover, he realized his passion for jewellery. At 19 he left M&S to start his first company selling ex high street clothing on eBay which was where he learnt about selling online.
His interests continued to grow.
Aged 22, Xander accepted a head office role in Manchester working as an Assistant Merchandiser for JD Sports. Xander lived in Manchester for 2 years until 2012 when he emigrated to Ticino, Switzerland to work in a head office role at Vans.
He left VF International late 2013 to go freelance. In 2015, he founded his company Xander Kostroma Fashion Ltd acquiring an exclusive license to produce jewellery and accessories for a UK brand, launching the division.
Around 3 years later, Xander left the license to concentrate on his own projects, one of which was the successful creation of his own name collection; Xander Kostroma® which he launched though his UK concessions Freemans.com & Lookagain.co.uk cementing a name for himself as a stand alone designer.
During the 2020 global pandemic Xander relocated to Lisbon, Portugal. He is currently developing a range of scarves inspired by his move - launching: Fall 2021.
