Paula Rowan: ‘You don’t go into a creative business just to make money – the success comes over time’

This year alone, Paula Rowan’s gloves have appeared on the hands of Emma Corrin, Cynthia Erivo, Charli xcx, Catherine Zeta Jones, Gwendoline Christie and our own Catriona Balfe. They have appeared in the Netflix series Wednesday (Season 2) – part of acclaimed costume designer Colleen Atwood’s brilliant costumes for the show, and have featured in fashion editorials in publications including British Vogue, AnOther Magazine, Edward Enninful’s EE72, Vogue Italia, British GQ and Vogue Hong Kong.

“I was recently in Milan and picked up Italian Vogue and there were my gloves,” Rowan says while we sit, like kids in a sweet shop, in her small boutique in Dublin’s Westbury Mall, where the screens outside featuring some of these photoshoots capture the attention of every passerby. “Even though I’m getting a lot of exposure at the moment, it’s still really nice when something like that happens.”

Having worked part-time with her brother throughout school and university, Rowan took over his leather goods business in the Westbury Mall in 2006. At that time, the shop had a franchise agreement to sell the Claudio Ferrici brand – the only other product Rowan was allowed to sell was gloves. Stocking a range for three seasons, she found that she couldn’t get what she wanted in terms of quality and consistency and set off to Italy, determined to get the product right. She launched her first glove collection in 2008 and since then, has steadily built a reputation at home and abroad for her beautiful designs.

Rowan’s gloves are now available in her store in Dublin as well as from her website. They are stocked at Bergdorf Goodman in New York, Nordstrom in New York and Chicago, and by Moda Operandi and Neiman Marcus, where they hold their own amongst the catalogue of luxury brands on sale.

The philosophy behind Rowan’s brand is not just to create something to keep the hands warm but to “dress the hands” and this has become part of the success of her brand. There are about 250 different designs in her collection, meaning there is something for everybody – whether you seek a practical pair of gloves for dog walking or a dramatic piece to wear on a special occasion. “People know that if they want a plain black pair of high-quality gloves or they want something avant-garde garde they can get them here,” she says.

Rich, strong colours tend to be Rowan’s best sellers – gloves in forest green, aubergine and bordeaux or in bright jewel tones such as teal. “You can see I stock about 50 different colours – often a customer will come into the shop with the intention of buying a pair of black gloves and end up going with a colour. The aubergine, for example, has a very rich appearance compared to black leather, so people will be drawn to the colour for that reason.”

When it comes to the styles of glove available, her shop is a veritable treasure trove where you’ll find everything from simple styles in leather or suede (as spotted on Lady Gaga in House of Gucci) to extraordinary leather gauntlets, full-length opera gloves and silk-lined avant-garde designs that go right up to the shoulder.

Christmas is a key season for gifting while during the rest of the year, people tend to shop for themselves. Meanwhile, the summer months have become busy with American customers seeking private shopping consultations in order to fully experience the shop and to get an understanding of what Rowan’s brand is about as her name grows Stateside.

“Selling through department stores entails tighter margins but it’s a great way to gain brand visibility – the reach that these stores have is phenomenal and there is a wider market in the US in terms of climate,” says Rowan. “My American customers really appreciate the quality of European goods, the story behind a product and my own story – they’re curious as to how a small Irish brand creates products that appear in American Vogue and the Wall Street Journal and on the hands of people like Lady Gaga.”

While further developing her own website and online presence, Rowan is slow to dismiss the importance of having a bricks-and-mortar presence. “The business at my store is strong and adds credibility to my online and overseas presence. I’m the owner of the business and the designer of this tactile product so having a place where I can talk about any aspect of the business and brand accounts for a lot.”

Designed in Ireland, Rowan’s gloves are made from leather, which is tanned and dyed naturally. The leather is then stretched, cut, stitched and embellished by master craftspeople in Naples – often third and fourth generation glovemakers. “It’s an intricate process and the quality of the stitching is all-important – the skill in this comes with time and experience – it’s not something you learn overnight,” she says. “The leathers we use are of very high quality – it doesn’t matter how good a design is if the right leather is not used.”

One of the men making Paula Rowan gloves has been doing it for 64 years since the age of 15. “The passion, skill and energy that he brings to his work is unbelievable,” she says. “My gloves are made by hand by people who have the same energy and passion that I have for the product.”

Over time, Rowan has become braver in terms of design: “I started with more conservative designs and the gloves have become bolder, bigger and longer over time,” she says. “Stylists and customers now know that it’s difficult to walk out of this shop without a glove because there’s such a huge selection in terms of colour and style.”

“I remember listening to an interview with Tom Ford in which he spoke about creating really good products that customers want to buy. I think I’ve done that here. I design the gloves here, there are strong ethics behind the production, the designs are strong and the quality of the leather is superb,” says Rowan. “Over time, stylists get to know you and the product and they build up a relationship with you. Photographers have said that the leather photographs really well… The big-name international stylists and photographers understand how the gloves are supposed to sit, fall and be photographed.”

She designs what feels inherently right to her and every aspect of each individual design is carefully considered with how the glove is worn in mind. “Think of how we talk and communicate with our hands – in Italy, it’s a language in itself. Think of a musician or an artist or anyone who works with their hands – even Katie Taylor throwing a punch – I’m thinking all the time about how a design will work on the hand.”

“You don’t go into a creative business just to make money – the success comes over time. I work morning, noon and night. I don’t mind because I love my business but the fashion industry is tough – it’s about grit, hard work and having a great product,” says Rowan. “Even a simple glove involves careful design in order to be both functional and beautiful. There is a reason behind each detail and inspiration can come from anywhere – art, architecture, movies… I’m thinking about these things all the time.”

paularowan.com, @paularowangloves.