Style Spy: Christian Summers

by Erica Corsano | October 17, 2008

Keeping an eye on: Christan Summers

Christan Summers is a savvy young entrepreneur with killer style. So it was no surprise that after completing her college studies, she launched her own Internet fashion company. Cinsummer.com is an online accessories store that carries funky goods from both local and international designers. Summers also offers a small selection of fair-trade items on the site, which makes her not only cool but also admirably benevolent. Her European flair and funky style caught my attention on more than one occasion, so I thought it was about time to have an espresso with this world traveler and find out more.

Q: How did you get into fashion?
A: I graduated from Northeastern with a BA. I majored in entrepreneurship and minored in marketing and small-business management. However, in 2004 I moved to Manhattan during my first co-op and loved it so much, I decided to take a year off from Northeastern. During that time I attended the Fashion Institute of Technology, majoring in fashion merchandising and marketing. After almost two years in New York, I decided to move back to Boston and finish at Northeastern. And during my last year at Northeastern, I traveled abroad to study in Paris at the American University of Paris and focused on social anthropology.

Q: Did you always know you wanted to work in fashion?
A: Absolutely. I have always been inspired by beauty. I know that may sound a bit cliché, but it is absolutely true. I love art. But more specifically, unique design, the kind that makes you stop and think for a minute. At 16, the legal age to work, I started my career in the retail industry and worked as a “support” at Country Road. I remember working with the older ladies and wishing they would let me work with the customers and help with store design and window displays. And even though I wasn’t supposed to style the customers, I would always offer them an accent piece when I was asked to bring a new size.

Q: How did you come up with the concept for your Web site?
A: I wanted something clean, uncluttered, and, in two words, simply elegant. There are too many cluttered Web sites, and the Internet is overwhelming. I wanted the site to be a place where consumers are not turned off, and are ready and willing to visit again. There is also this societal idea that bigger/ more is better. Simplicity has almost been forgotten. I am selling beautiful jewelry; I have no reason or desire to take away from the pieces with an overcrowded and irrelevant Web site.

Q: Some of the products you offer are fair-trade-certified. Where do you source those products from?
A: The fair-trade products come from all over the world, such as Afghanistan, Africa, India, Mexico, and Ethiopia.

Q: How would you describe the type of woman who shops your site?
A: Confident. She is not scared to step outside the norm. She is an individual and has learned to express her individuality through her style. We often forget that style and fashion are a form of expression. We get caught in fear and don’t buy certain items because we “have nowhere to wear them.” My customer styles herself each day with no question of what others will think; she embraces her style and her ability to be unique.

Q: How would you describe your personal style?
A: I dress how I feel. I never walk out of the house if I feel the slightest bit uncomfortable. I love layering, piecing different styles and shapes together, and I absolutely love the fall. I live in leather jackets and boots; I have serious addictions to both. I’d like to think I’ve adopted style from my travels overseas, especially Europe. I love the simplicity of it; I feel it is sexy yet conservative and comfortable. And in my opinion, there is no better feeling.

Q: What are your favorite stores in Boston?
A: I love the small boutiques: Parlor on Washington Street and Turtle on Tremont. Matsu and Reiss are fantastic stores. Dress is also a funky spot. They carry one of my favorite Italian shoe designers, Fiorentini + Baker. You’ll also find me shuffling through vintage shops in Jamaica Plain and Cambridge.

Q: Any other favorite places for shopping?
A: Thailand is an amazing place — the JJ Market in Bangkok has some of the most innovative style I’ve ever seen. The bags, clothes, and accessories are well-made and so wonderfully inexpensive. I think London is incredible for the vintage shops, and Paris is hands-down inspirational. Amsterdam also has a very funky flavor to it.

Q: How would you compare them to Boston?
A: It’s tough in Boston because there is this reputation of only designer labels and baseball hats. I think the main difference is the level of creativity and confidence. Not to say Boston is not confident or creative, I just see a lot more risks being made in other cities.

Q: How long have you lived in Boston?
A: I grew up in Boston, so I have lived in the city on and off for 24 years.

Q: Do you feel it has evolved, from a fashion perspective, in that time?
A: Yes, definitely. The South End is a perfect example of that evolution. There is a growing art and creative crowd that has begun to make a beneficial impact. There is also an effort being made to open stylistic restaurants and lounges. This is no doubt a factor in the style which feeds a city. If we take pride in the way we dress, we also want to take pride in where we take ourselves. I think the growth in international college students has made a significant contribution, as well. Different perspectives are what cause growth, and conscious/ unconscious influence is a major factor of a person’s own creative development.

Q: Are there any pieces that you’re really excited to purchase for the fall/winter season?
A: There is this amazing new designer from Berlin, Kilian Kerner, whom I met at the Project show in February. His cuts and lines are wonderfully sexy and conservative, and I have my eye on this gorgeous khaki-colored loose “trench” jacket and a thigh-length, loosefitted chiffon black dress.