Masaba Gupta to take over as Wendell Rodricks label’s creative head?

Masaba Gupta and The late Wendell Rodricks

Schulen Fernandes has announced her departure from the Wendell Rodricks label. The young designer held the pilot role of creative director for the iconic resort wear label for four years. She was handpicked as successor by the late designer Wendell Rodricks, who died last year.

Decisions like these are heartbreaking and near impossible to make or feel right about," Fernandes told mid-day from her home in Panjim, Goa.

Having first met Rodricks as a student at SNDT University, she took over as creative director of the label in 2016. Her decision marks a shift in the life of the label that was acquired by Mumbai-based luxury fashion house Purple Style Labs (PSL) in December 2020. Founded by Abhishek Agarwal, PSL is backed by Flipkart's Binny Bansal.

Wendell Rodricks and Schulen Fernandes right before their show as part of India Fashion Week in March 2017 in New Delhi. Pics/Getty Images

"I expected as design head to design collections, of course. I was very clear in the initial discussions of the acquisition about my sole interest." Fernandes was eventually asked to overlook the production and operational activities of the label, considering that the new team would need time to acquaint themselves with the label's existing structure and workflow.

Fernandes admitted feeling assured at the time, but said, soon, things started to turn. "I was promised a team of two assistants following my request, but that never materialised despite reminders," she said.

"It was a fairly small team and with my constant involvement with daily business work, my creative time and bandwidth really took a setback," she added.

Masaba Gupta

The proverbial last nail in the coffin came after the launch of the Spring Summer 2021 collection titled, The Sea Glass, in late April. "I guess the decision was a no-brainer when Abhishek [Agarwal] during our last meeting in Goa mentioned that the management did not intend to make any new designs or another new seasonal collection for the next 6-12 months. They thought the label had a huge archive of designs to take them through another sales year and saw no purpose in investing in a new collection, post the Sea Glass collection," Fernandes explained.

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When mid-day contacted Agarwal via email, our request to elaborate on future strategy was left unaddressed, citing: "a strictly confidential business strategy. "But I can confidently say that we've been very clear in our long-term vision since the inception." Agarwal stated: "Whenever a group such as PSL acquires a brand, the target is to scale it multi-fold and expand across channels and jurisdictions. In that journey, it's not uncommon for creative talent to feel unaligned with the business side of things."

Wendell Rodricks label's Spring Summer 2021 collection titled The Sea Glass designed by Schulen Fernandes

In March, mid-day had contacted Agarwal to confirm widespread speculation that Mumbai-based fashion entrepreneur Masaba Gupta would step in as creative head of the Wendell Rodricks label. He had then responded with: "We might be looking at doing a cross-line with the two brands together given that we are also an equity investor in Masaba, but there is no appointment as the creative director for the WR brand." Fernandes did confirm an "open" discussion of a creative collaboration for one collection between the two labels. "There was a private conversation between two friends; Anjana Sharma and Masaba. It was an interesting idea, which never took off, as Masaba got busy with her TV show and other commitments. I, for one, was really looking forward to it," said Fernandes.

This writer revisited the question about Gupta's appointment with Agarwal this week. Gupta shared a close relationship with the late Rodricks, and like Fernandes, considered him her mentor. "I wouldn't be in fashion if it weren't for him," Gupta had told mid-day in an interview in October 2016. That PSL is a strategic equity investor in the House of Masaba Gupta is yet another link. Gupta however, clarified in an email note: "We are not doing any cross-line [collection] with WR, nor do we have business plans with the WR label. I am committed to my label, and my focus lies in growing the House of Masaba. I wish the WR label all the best in their journey." Agarwal on his part termed it a rumour.

Who will replace Fernandes is unknown, although Agarwal confirmed the possibility of a new appointment. Fernandes said she plans to take some time away from fashion and process this unexpected development. "Wendell and the label are a huge influence in my life. And anyone who knows me well, knows how committed I am to the legacy."

Also Read: Masaba Gupta: Stopped doing fashion shows for two years