Part 2 - Leadership, Slowing Down & Earning Luxury - A Conversation with Kresse Wesling CBE
- fazekasboglarka
- Aug 3
- 7 min read
Start with a problem, with intention and collaboration
One of the most profound takeaways from my interview with Kresse was the simple truth that you don’t need to invent something new to build something extraordinary. You can start by solving an existing problem — and in doing so, create something of real value.
“I always tell students,” she said, “find something that is local, personal and speaks to you. As soon as you fix one problem, then you can tackle another and another.” This isn’t just advice — it’s an invitation.
To be curious.
If interested in waste, to go and check out commercial and industrial waste – “There are still 13 million tonnes of waste is going to landfill” (yearly, in the UK).
To be brave enough to develop relationships with people and organizations who are already experts on their field and ask: How did you do it?
To learn from them and build meaningful collaborations.
“When I say deep and meaningful I mean not behind the scenes. Be out there and loud and celebratory about it. I get fashion likes its secrets, but at the same time, we're only going to get meaningful change if we're really transparent. And that means saying : Hey, we could have spent 10 years developing this, but we found this incredible innovator who's going to help us embed it in 2. Let’s save some time. Let's all go to Denmark to the Copenhagen Summit next year and be much, much happier.”
From Waste to Regeneration
In a world obsessed with speed and scale, Elvis & Kresse operates intentionally. 2015 was a turning point, when they asked themselves:
“OK, what we're doing is good, but how we're doing that could be improved. We wanted to go on this regenerative journey. By regenerative let me be explicit because a lot of people are using this language now because it's the new sustainability buzzword, but again, they don't know what it means. For me it means that you have to be doing exponentially more good than you do bad and you do that in very specific areas: with water, people, carbon, energy and with materials. So we decided to map that out.”
“For us, that looked like coming to a farm. It's a fascinating project and lots of people would think it was irrational for a handbag company to start running a farm. “
“We're generating our own renewable energy, we're not buying it. We can treat our own wastewater here, we're not sending it off to be treated ecologically, and actually it treats the wastewater of the business plus 3 dwellings. So from a water perspective, we are truly regenerative.
Additionally, we are contributing in women's education, which is why we have the programme with Barefoot College who specifically train female solar engineers.”
Their regenerative farm is a model for how businesses can take responsibility for restoring ecosystems, not just offsetting damage. “Offsetting to me is like saying: ‘I need to lose weight, but I’m going to pay someone to do it for me.’” That kind of honesty and clarity is rare — and refreshing.
The Responsibility of Being Luxury
Another part of the conversation that stuck with me was Kresse’s perspective on luxury. Not as a label, but as a standard. For her, luxury is earned — not claimed. “I don't think companies should say it about themselves… we didn’t say it about ourselves until it was said about us by reputable third parties.”
Elvis & Kresse’s materials may come from waste — fire hoses, offcut leathers, parachute silks — but the result is anything but ordinary. What makes it luxury isn’t just the craftsmanship or aesthetic. It’s the thoughtfulness, the longevity, and stick to the company’s values: “We’ve got to make things of great quality, things we want to wear, things that are useful and beautiful… those are all luxury terms: refined, pure, essential.”
It all started with a single belt — designed to last — and a patient, consistent approach to quality and service. Over time, others took notice. “We were selected as one of Walpole’s Brands of Tomorrow. When they introduced us, the director said, ‘They are the future of luxury.’ That was a big moment — and a big responsibility.”
Luxury, in Kresse’s eyes, must be consistent and future-proof — not trend-driven.
“So how do you convince people to love fire hose? Slowly.
How do you convince people that we are luxury? Slowly.
You have to do it by consistently making good products, providing good customer service and delivering beyond people's expectations. Then you get amazing things that happen like the first ever green issue of US Vogue came out in 2009 and they chose our belts to put on Cameron Diaz over a Phillip Lim dress.”
In an industry often obsessed with “the new,” Elvis & Kresse dares to slow down, repeat, refine — and build products that stand the test of time. That, to me, is the truest form of luxury.
Photos: Mario Testino, Conde Nast
Leadership & Becoming 2 Time Winner of Cartier Women's Award
Kresse’s approach to leadership reflects that same grounded mindset. “You embed joy in the work itself. You don’t wake up and go do something terrible and then feel you have to atone for it later.” When I asked her if she has any role models, she shared: “I've got a few, but certainly my grandmother, she was an incredible woman. She's hard to talk about because she was so good, that it almost seems kind of unbelievable.
She never wasted any minute of any day, and she never wasted an opportunity to do something extraordinary, even you could be walking down the street with her ten years after she retired from teaching and have someone come up and say, ‘You saved my life or you changed my life’ and that kind of thing happened with her a lot. And she wasn't an environmentalist as I would describe it, but she was just incredibly passionate about everything that she did, and she was always on the right side of everything, and certainly sits on my shoulder, reminding me to do the right thing all the time.”
It deeply made me think of my mum, who is now a retired teacher and certainly still adored by her students. How wonderful that we have people in these professions where they impacted hundreds of people’s life in an early age? When I look at Kresse’s work, making an impact and giving back come as deeply rooted values for Elvis & Kresse. 50% of profit is going to charity. With this business model they already inspired other organisations to give away from their profit. This is true leadership in luxury by Kresse Wesling CBE. She is leading by example. She is walking the talk.
“You are what you do, not what you say you'll do”
When I worked in headquarters, on the hard days in the office, how many times have we said we are not saving lives in fashion? When things got tough, budget got cut, spreadsheets didn’t get saved, systems broke, this is how we consoled ourselves and each other. But what if we could save lives with fashion? What if we change our mindset from making fashion for the sake of beauty, glamour, exclusiveness - and let’s be honest – vanity, to create change, solve problems, nurture and give back to our Mother Earth and society?
In 2011, Kresse won the Cartier Women’s Initiative Award, and earlier this year in 2025, she received the Cartier Impact Award for her incredible work. “What I absolutely loved about the initiative is that it brings really impactful women together in a very direct personal and celebratory way.” Through Cartier’s leadership training, she’s now expanding her own toolkit with the Unlocking Eve program — learning to use more of her skills and embed in her leadership. “You're a work in progress until the day you die. And that’s that.”
She stated, community and collaboration are crucial, especially in an industry that often runs on secrecy and competition. “There’s way too much secrecy in fashion… We need to share more. Other industries – like software companies - do it much, much better.” Her call to action for brands is clear: collaborate with people who already know how to do it. Be bold. Be transparent. It made me also wonder: What benefit has the secrecy in the fashion industry and why are we feeding this culture?
For those of us who aren’t building their own sustainable fashion brands, she is still a powerful inspiration: There is something each of us can do. From the way we consume, the companies we support, to the conversations we have, we can all contribute by slowing down, consuming less, and learning from those already leading the way.
As we ended our conversation, I asked Kresse what was next. “Too much,” she laughed. “But that’s what makes it fun and interesting — even 20 years in.” That optimism — grounded in realism and deep commitment — is something I’ll carry with me for a long time.
In so many moments, our wonderful fashion industry can feel commercialized, fast, overcomplicated and destructive. I feel so much gratitude for Kresse, being a guiding light and inspiration with Elvis, their work is incredibly important on so many levels, and not only in the fashion industry. Their journey proves what I’ve always believed: that meaningful, ethical, regenerative work is not only possible — it’s necessary. It’s time we stop applauding radical ideas and start making them the norm.
Thank you Kresse for inspiring me. I learnt so much from this conversation and I am so excited to visit you and Elvis on your farm for a workshop.
And Dear Reader, thank you for reading both Part 1 & 2. Curious to see, how are you regenerating your resources in your life to make an impact in our environment and society?
