Kathleen Kye delivers a lecture at the Herald Design Forum 2023 held at the Shilla Seoul on Tuesday. (Lee Sang-sub/The Korea Herald)

Fashion design is by nature a creative pursuit, but fashion guru Kathleen Kye stressed that balancing one’s entrepreneurial mindset with one’s innovative vision is important in the world of design.

Speaking at the Herald Design Forum 2023 at the Shilla Seoul on Tuesday, the CEO and director of fashion brand KYE and EYEYE emphasized that having a business mindset helps foster one’s leadership and problem-solving abilities. In her lecture titled “How to Cultivate an Entrepreneurial Mindset as a Designer,” Kye noted that experimenting and transforming creative ideas into business outcomes was key to her success.

Her brand KYE is noted for its strong unisex high-end street wear and representation of youth culture, gaining her recognition as an influential designer of a leading young brand in Korea.

The designer was first spotted by a Vauxhall fashion scout during London Fashion Week in 2011, where she showcased her first collection. The designer won the Samsung Fashion & Design Fund and was a semifinalist of the LVMH prize for young fashion designers in 2014.

KYE has collaborated with numerous international brands and has also worked with leading K-pop acts such as 2NE1 and SHINee, among others.