Fashion Insiders Want to Be Swathed in Zankov Knits
It is several weeks before his Fall 2024 New York Fashion Week presentation, and designer Henry Zankov is speaking to me from a hotel room in Paris where he is showing his current collection to buyers. “There might be some noise because appointments are happening in the other room,” he tells me. “I think the buyers feel optimistic. Everything in the showroom is going well, and it’s been busy. It’s our busiest market ever, which is great.”
Zankov’s eponymous, cult-fave brand is four years old and focuses on sharp but easy-to-wear knits for men and women. When he designs, he says, he envisions men and women who are a bit complicated, very worldly, and always daring; he often thinks of actor Tilda Swinton, or the daughters of the late artist Brice Marden, Melia and Mirabelle. Zankov’s designs are nuanced, with foundations in color play and innovation in stitching techniques. He creates garments like soft mohair sweaters that are given graphic treatments, long dresses that experiment with color blocking, and plush coats with bold hues and stripes.
His attention to detail and craft-based, sustainably minded design approach are what elevate his pieces, which for fall include an impossibly fluffy orange maxi dress and matching scarf, with oversized pockets and a diamond-weave pencil skirt. Zankov’s prices are competitive, ranging from $495 (a vest in mohair) to $2,300 (for a hand-knit coat). Because of this, the brand is selling well, and this season will expand its wholesale business into Asia. Right now it is stocked at important stores like Bergdorf Goodman in New York, McMullen Boutique on the West Coast, and ByGeorge in Texas.
Before becoming an ascendant fashion wunderkind, the Russian-born Zankov immigrated to Brooklyn Heights as a child. By the early 2000s, he was studying fashion design and specializing in knitwear at the Fashion Institute of Technology. “What I noticed while I was in school was that I was drawn to ease and softness when it came to material and silhouette,” he says. “I was good at it. It came naturally to me, and some of my professors were like, ‘Oh, you’re good at this. You should try to get into this knitwear program.’ But I wasn’t sure. So, I thought, Okay, let’s try it.”
While at FIT, Zankov interned at luxury cashmere house TSE, where he was able to study and work with world-class yarns, and to learn new stitch technologies and handwork. After school, he became an assistant knitwear designer at Donna Karan.
“It was kind of at the height of Donna Karan, just after LVMH bought the brand. Also, in the design studios in New York at that time, there was a huge influx of European designers,” he says. “I was fortunate to learn from many who had worked for big houses in Europe. A lot of them were British. Some of them were French. I learned a lot about draping, about working in a 3-D format, as opposed to sketching. We did a lot of toiling and fittings—you know, trying things upside down, back to back, back to front, cutting off a sleeve, attaching it to the neck.”
Sophistication is integral to Zankov’s process. As he notes, “the colors for this latest Fall 2024 collection all had to feel like they were glowing from within. So they were very saturated, but they didn’t feel heavy. There was this kind of luminescent quality to the palette that we chose. When you dye these beautiful colors, they naturally look so beautiful, especially with special yarns like the crochets, the cellophane, and the cotton crepes.”
Beyond his skill with knits, Zankov also understands how to scale a business—always a challenge for a small, independent label. Now that the brand is graduating from upstart to something more established, where does he plan to take Zankov from here?
“The example of Azzedine Alaïa is very interesting, with his home and atelier and store in one place,” he says. “Of course, I would love to have a store. But if I did, it would be something a bit different, maybe connecting it to our studio where we work. Then we’d be able to have this kind of intimate relationship with the outside world.” He does not believe Zankov needs a store in every city, though. “That’s not the goal for me—it is important to have meaningful growth. I think having a store in New York is the goal for now. As we continue to grow the business, I would consider other cities as well.”
Bergdorf Goodman chief merchandising officer Yumi Shin agrees there’s longevity in what Zankov is putting out into the world. “I first met with Henry at his Spring 2023 presentation, and his painterly collection and joyful color combinations immediately resonated with me,” she says via email. “His collections since have all been infused with his artisanal celebration of craft and technical ability.”
A high-level retail executive for over a decade who has seen promising brands rise and fall, Shin makes a hopeful prediction for Zankov’s future: “I think we’ve only seen a small fraction of what he’s capable of so far. Henry has imbued his sensibility into the clothes and created a strong brand identity. His singular perspective is central to its success. So, as long as he continues what he’s doing, the sky’s the limit.”
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