Trusted partner: Cha'coud
In the midst of a pandemic, and with 2 years of experience experimenting with pattern making and developing her ideas with an ever-growing community on social media, Charlotte Prost decided to create Cha'coud, a brand of patterns for women and children. She tells us about the genesis and prospects of this beautiful project. 
© Cha'coud - 2023
First steps in the world of textiles
It all started with a professional baccalaureate in fashion and clothing at La Martinière Diderot in Lyon, a choice made for the quality and reputation of the school in terms of textile training. Charlotte spent 3 years there, before moving on to a 2-year specialization in pattern making, still within the same establishment.
"I have always had a sensitivity for modeling, that is to say starting from a drawing and making it possible, transforming it into a living model."
For her final year of study, she turned to a professional degree in industrial modeling, which allowed her to join the French company Millet, specialized in mountaineering and outdoor clothing, on a work-study basis. Charlotte expanded her skills there by working in particular on more technical fabrics, the opposite of the ready-to-wear world that had been her core business until then.
"At Millet, I worked as a product developer in collaboration with our foreign suppliers: they took care of the modeling part, then sent me a finished model, which I then had tried on my mannequin to check if the result met my product manager's expectations."
Following this experience, Charlotte decided to turn to a new world: lingerie. She therefore resumed specialized training in lingerie, corsetry and swimwear, always with the idea of improving herself further.
"Each textile sector has its own specificities in terms of materials, cuts, etc. In lingerie, we work with very small pieces and this requires immense precision: if two cups are not symmetrical, it will be seen straight away!"
© Cha'coud - 2023
When a pandemic reshuffles the cards
In the world of lingerie, Charlotte learned her trade at Lise Charmel and Aubade in Paris, where she moved from assembly to the design office, continuing to deepen her knowledge of pattern making. It was then 2020, and the companies were facing an unexpected situation that disrupted their various projects. Doors closed in front of Charlotte at the time when she was supposed to enter the job market, and the decision to try the adventure with her bosses then took shape.
"I had started selling patterns alongside my experience at Millet, because I wanted to be able to keep a foot in the pattern-making business. And during Covid it really took off."
On July 1, 2020, Charlotte officially launched her brand Cha'coud. She gave herself a year to try the adventure, discovered the world of entrepreneurship and got caught up in the game. With this insatiable curiosity that characterizes her so well, she learned as she went along and met a whole bunch of actors from different professional backgrounds, refining her network a little more.
It was at this same time that she joined the Textile Lab , a coworking space dedicated to textile creation and offering both workspaces and training. Charlotte moved there with the idea of continuing her solo adventure, but by giving herself the opportunity to be surrounded and supported on a daily basis by people working in her sector, and who could bring an outside perspective to her project.
© Cha'coud - 2023
Why did it work right away?
Charlotte had already built up a community on social networks via a Facebook page launched in 2018. But her secret lies rather in her ability to quickly offer an extensive catalog of her models.
"As I started making patterns in 2018, I already had a base of 10 to 12 models in the collection, plus a clientele satisfied with the quality of the products and who trusted me. So when I officially launched the brand in 2020, I wasn't starting from scratch and that's what made the difference."
Covid is also contributing to this snowball effect: locked up at home, people are turning to the creative arts, particularly sewing. With her patterns, Charlotte is therefore arriving at the right time to meet this new, growing demand.
After several attempts, Charlotte finally found her cruising speed and produced now 3 collections per year: 9 pieces for the Fall/Winter collection, 5 to 6 pieces for Spring, and just as many for Summer. Through her brand, she offers both PDF patterns and pocket patterns, and since July 2021 has been developing partnerships with points of sale all over France, in order to make her offer ever more accessible.
"I really wanted to work with physical retailers so that my customers could ask their questions to professionals. Today, if someone is a little lost in the making of their garment, they can go to my retailer and receive quality advice."
© Phileone France - 2023
Cha'coud and Philéone Fabrics
Charlotte carefully chooses her various partners. Her priority: the quality of the products offered at the point of sale, which will be displayed alongside her own patterns. An acquaintance she met at the Textile Lab told her about the Philéone Tissus boutique, and told her that the boutique was looking for a Lyon pattern designer to complete its range of upcycled fabrics.
"The Philéone Tissus store was a completely different point of sale from the one where I already sold my patterns in Lyon, which was a real haberdashery. Here, there is mainly a very textile universe where quality is prioritized above all. And above all, there is a very strong Lyon DNA!"
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