Nada Shepherd knew she wanted to be a fashion designer when she was just five years old – “but in all fairness” she adds, “I also thought I wanted to be a dentist, shrink, doctor, astronaut, ad executive and athlete.”

But that desire to do it all has propelled Shepherd from one of a multitude of fashion students and designer hopefuls to creative director of her own line, NADA. “You name it I did it”, says Shepherd of her industry beginnings after fashion college.

From pattern drafting and sewing, to marketing and finances, Shepherd tackled every aspect of starting her own line – “I was all over the place” she says.

It was a word of advice from her now husband that set Shepherd out on the path towards really starting a fashion line. “What do you want from fashion?” he asked bluntly. “Do you want to run a business or is this a hobby? Both are great – but you need to choose.”





At that point Shepherd moved into the Toronto Fashion Incubator, where fellow designers David Dixon and Joeffer Caoc are also alumni. In the TFI Shepherd’s focus narrowed, and she started to build a team. With a team by her side, Shepherd could put all of her passion into driving the business forward and designing.

Today, NADA collections are designed with the same yin and yang of wanting it all that defines Shepherd’s start in the industry. NADA Spring 2009 was inspired by the balance of femininity and masculinity of Athena the Greek Goddess of War, Wisdom and the Arts. The collection is a harmony of sensuous feminine silhouettes and armour-like metallics. “Although [Athena] is ancient, I feel that she is really what most modern women are like today” says Shepherd.




Shepherd herself exemplifies the modern women as she describes her favourite items in her wardrobe – a menswear tailored white shirt with French Cuffs, and feminine heels.

When designing Shepherd draws inspiration from the masculine and the feminine form. “Different women and some men have captured me, but I would never tell them – that said, I do have a soft spot for red heads” she muses. Always inspired by eras past, Shepherd adds, “I really appreciate the 40s and 50s, because both men and women made an effort every time they stepped outside.”

NADA continually mixes elements of the past and future, and nowhere is this more evident than in the Fall 2009 collection, which is a vision of a utopian future. When asked her predictions of what this future might look like in the fashion world, Shepherd says, “in a funny way it would be a return to our tribal roots when fashion was about the everyday materials that were at hand.”

With the attention turned back to the immediate future of the fashion industry, specifically how it will be altered by the economic recession, Shepherd shows that she is very much tapped in to the effects of the downturn. “I can go on and on here,” she says, “two or three poor seasons, really even one bad season for a designer can cause them to close their doors forever.”


However, she adds, “This particular recession is actually good for fashion and design in general. There was a lot of crap being dumped on the market,” fast food fashion as she calls it. Shepherd recognizes that consumers are looking for “emotional pieces”, items that hold some significance – the market is forcing designers to “dig deep and get creative.”

As a designer Shepherd has found a career that is engaging and ever-changing. “I learn every day. I get to design, meet people, and challenge my mind…I feel alive,” she says.

Working with a team that she loves, Shepherd goes to work everyday excited about the future, designing clothes that she hopes women will feel good about themselves in. For her, fashion is about creativity, small details, and respect for yourself and those around you. She ends that, “self esteem shouldn’t be wrapped up in the superficial, but it never hurts to put one’s best foot forward when entering the world.”













NadaDesigns.com

by Heather Loney