Mangrove's Luxurious Scarves Bring High Fashion to Hacienda

By Jay Hipps, Hacienda Network Staff Writer

It has been just four years since creative director Cyril Dimple founded Mangrove but her line of women's scarves has rocketed to prominence, finding a place in over 250 stores including Nordstrom. Capitalizing on that success, the company in June launched a new line, Madras, which brings Mangrove's adventurous fabrics and prints to more budget-conscious buyers.

The company's web site describes their scarves as "statements of authentic elegance, a visual melody of colors, styles, and patterns that will spice up any outfit for any occasion. We see scarves not as an accessory but as an expression of personal flair."

That flair is expressed in a number of ways. Mangrove scarves frequently combine a variety of techniques including digital printing, block printing, tie dyes, foil, hand painting, and embroidery, and are woven from fabrics including extra fine modal, micro modal, wool, and cashmere. The resulting combination of media and contemporary forms, such as mixing tie dye with block printing or foil, provides expressive designs which are earning lots of attention.

Mangrove's scarves have attracted coverage from magazines like People Style Watch, InStyle, and Travel & Leisure as well as influential fashion bloggers including Paola Alberdi, Elizabeth Minett, Chriselle Lim, Rocky Barnes, Marianna Hewitt, Arielle Nachmani, and Emily Palos. Celebrities including Cindy Crawford, Naomi Watts, Jessica Alba, Emmy Rossum, and Gisele Bundchen have been spotted wearing the company's scarves. Mangrove's Facebook page shows many examples of how these celebrities and bloggers have styled their scarves.

The new Madras line is a part of Mangrove for the price-conscious customer. The line is currently sold exclusively via Stitch Fix, a San Francisco-based personal styling service that caters to busy women on the go via its service at StitchFix.com.

While it must be gratifying to see models and actresses wearing her scarves, Cyril says an encounter with an unknown customer gave her one of her biggest thrills as a designer. "I bumped into a woman walking into an elevator in downtown San Francisco. She saw that I was wearing a Mangrove scarf and she said, 'Oh, I have that scarf! Doesn't it feel so soft?' That was huge for me, that compliment. Though I didn't tell her it was mine, those are the things as a creative director that I really crave."

As part of its success, Mangrove also makes an effort to give something back. Currently, the company works with Samahope, an innovative San Francisco-based non-profit that allows donors to support doctors who provide critical surgeries and treatments to patients who would otherwise be unable to receive it. More details can be found at Samahope.org. Mangrove also works with the Salesians of Don Bosco, an international organization of men based in India dedicated full time to the service of young people, especially those who are in need.

More information on Mangrove's scarves, a list of stores where they are sold, and an e-boutique are available at ShopMangrove.com. An exclusive 20% discount for Hacienda Network readers is available at ShopMangrove.com by using the coupon code HAC 20.

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