Late 60s… Everything was cheap, but it was all original.

Munemi: You are a native New Yorker. How it was like in The City back in a days when you were younger, fashion wise, town wise? Also how did you get into a fashion industry?
Munemi: You’re from Manhattan, but what was New York like when you were younger? In terms of fashion, and the city itself. And what led you into the fashion industry?

LindaWhen I was a teenager, it was the late 60’s. So it was a very fashionable moment, with mini-skirts, high-platform shoes, tube tops-- we were all kind of hippy and dressed in a very original way. It was very different than it is now. We weren’t so much into the clothes, as we were really into our own being creative-- there were no designer clothes and so we didn't have to spend much money, which of course we didn't have-- on great stuff. Everything was cheap but everything was original, and we just made up our own styles. And those became the fashion trends, and we didn’t even know it. Everything was affordable and it was very different.
I opened a clothing shop called Linda Hopp when I was 30 years old. It was 1980. That was the first time I really got into fashion. And I started designing my own clothes, and I had this very charming boutique in Soho and it was actually the first ever boutique in Soho. Before the shop, in my 20’s, I wanted to be a fashion photographer and it didn’t work out. So I got into a boutique business and then I started styling right after that. Someone told me “ Oh, you should work for a magazine, you have a good taste. You could put things together. “ And I didn’t even know that such a career as a "stylist" even existed. So I worked at Harper’s Bazaar, as a fashion editor, and then at Henri Bendel. And after that I went freelance.

LindaI was in my late teens in the late 60s. It was a very fashionable era. Mini-skirts, high-platform shoes, tube tops—we were all somewhat hippies and dressed in our own unique styles. It was quite different from today. We were more interested in expressing our individuality and creativity, rather than the clothes themselves. There were no designer brands, so we didn’t have to spend much money—which, of course, we didn’t have—on nice things. Everything was cheap, but it was all original. We simply created our own individual styles. We didn’t even realize it at the time, but those styles later became fashion trends. Everything was affordable, and it was truly different from today.
When I was 30, I opened a clothing store called ‘Linda Hopp.’ It was 1980. That was the first time I truly entered the world of fashion. I started designing my own clothes and had this very charming boutique, which was actually the very first boutique in Soho. Before opening the shop, in my 20s, I wanted to be a fashion photographer, but it didn’t work out. So I got into the boutique business, and shortly after, I started styling. Someone told me, “You should work for a magazine. You have good taste; you can put things together.” At the time, I didn’t even know that a profession like “stylist” existed. So, I worked as a fashion editor at ‘Harper’s Bazaar,’ and then at ‘Henri Bendel.’ After that, I became a freelancer.

The Reason Behind the Shop Name “Linda Hopp”

M: How did you get the name, Linda Hopp?
M: Where did the name “Linda Hopp” come from?

LIt was actually from a Swedish photographer I worked with, named Gosta Peterson, who loved dancing and jazz. There was this famous dance from the 1950's called the “Lindy Hop.” So he called me Linda Hopp after that “Lindy Hop.” And that became the name for my shop and everybody for years didn’t know my real last name, which is Rodin like the French sculptor. So I had that nickname for about for 20 years and I finally thought this is crazy: I need to have my own name back. So I went back to my real name and decided to name my oil RODIN olio lusso, because it's such a beautiful name, and it's my own. And the reason of using "olio lusso" is because I have lived in Italy for a long time and I am fluent in that language, and olio lusso sounded better to me than luxury oil, which olio lusso means in Italian.
LIt was actually given to me by a Swedish photographer I worked with, Gosta Peterson, who loved dance and jazz. There was a famous dance from the 1950s called the Lindy Hop, and he nicknamed me Linda Hopp after that dance. That became the name of my shop, and for many years, nobody knew my real last name, which is Rodin, like the French sculptor. I went by that nickname for about 20 years, and finally, I thought, “This is crazy; I need to reclaim my own name.” So I went back to my real name and decided to name my oil “RODIN olio lusso” because it’s a beautiful name, and it’s my own. I chose “olio lusso” because I lived in Italy for a long time and am fluent in the language, and it sounded more appealing to me than “luxury oil,” which is what olio lusso means in Italian.

This is How “RODIN olio lusso” Was Born

M: I would like to talk about your oil. How did it start?
M: I’d like to talk about your oil. What was the inspiration behind it?

LWell, it was 3 years ago, when I was in Rome with a friend of mine who was pregnant. She was very into health foods and said “let’s go to a health food store and buy some oils and make it for our skin.” So we went to a health store in Rome and we came home, started making some mixtures of different oils, which turned out to be terrible and we were laughing so much saying “oh, god, we don’t know what we are doing.” Anyway, when I got to NY, I thought hmm, maybe I could make something on my own, having been in the fashion business for so long, and having tried all products, and having spent so much money on all of them. Why not try and make one on myself? I had traveled to a lot of places and found local oils there, like Argan Oil in Morocco and Calendula Oil in South Africa. Through those experience, I knew all other products and what oils I liked. So I went to a health food store myself and bought all the 11 oils I liked and I started with them. And today, it is still the same 11 oils and the same recipe. So, started mixing it at home, and I bought bottles and started giving it to all my friends, and they loved it. They were like “ How do you make this? This is so good!” And I was like “ I just make it.” And I never thought about making it to a business. But a funny thing happened. It was February, exactly 2 years ago. I had a hand surgery and my nephew came to visit me to take care of me. And he walked in the apartment and said, “What are these all bottles and oils doing here? What are you doing with them?” So I told him “ Oh, you know I make this really nice face oil for my friends and I. “ and he said, “ Well, how much do you sell it for?” So I told him “ I don’t sell it, I just give it away.” And he said, “ Why don’t you make a business of it? What’s the formula?” so I said, “ I don’t know the formula.” He said, “ So, how do you make it the same way every time?” then I said, “ I just know. I could do it with my eyes closed." After, he went online and bought me the proper equipment to mix and measure scientifically. And, I made it 5 times the way I normally do without measuring, and pouring it into a cup, and it was perfect. Then the 6th time, I poured each of the 11 oils into a measured cylinder and he wrote down how much of each oil were in each cylinder. And that was it: that was the formula and it has not changed since that day. After a while I started buying quality oils from 5 different manufacturers and decided to get nicer bottles. And this wonderful graphics designer who also designed the graphics for Linda Hopp, my boutique in Soho worked on the logo and packaging with me. The packaging is very beautiful, simple and chic.

The biggest sales for the oil come from the sales from this amazing dermatologist, Dr. David Colbert, MD. http://www.store.nydg.com.
He is one of the best dermatologists in the country. He is a certified dermatologist and also a beauty doctor. He has a very large celebrity following; he recommends my oil to all of his clients. He also did the clinical testing for me, using no animals, only humans so it’s 100% medically tested and approved. And all of the ingredients are essential oils. There are no chemicals in RODIN olio lusso, and it smells divine.

LIt was three years ago, when I was in Rome with a friend who was pregnant. She was very into health foods and suggested, “Let’s go to a health food store, buy some oils, and make something for our skin.” So we went to a health store in Rome. Back home, we started mixing different oils, but it was a disaster, and we were laughing so hard, saying, “Oh God, we have no idea what we’re doing.” But after returning to New York, I thought, maybe I could create something myself. I had been in the fashion industry for so long, tried every product, and spent so much money on them. Why not try making one myself? I had traveled extensively and discovered local oils like Argan Oil in Morocco and Calendula Oil in South Africa. Through those experiences, I learned about various products and which oils I preferred. So, I went to a health food store myself, bought the 11 oils I liked, and started there. Those same 11 oils and the same recipe are still used today. I began mixing them at home, bought bottles, and gave them to all my friends. They loved them, saying, “How do you make this? It’s so good!” I’d just reply, “I just make it.” I never considered turning it into a business. But something funny happened about two years ago, in February. I had hand surgery, and my nephew came to take care of me. He walked into my apartment and asked, “What are all these bottles and oils doing here? What are you making?” I told him, “Oh, you know, I make this really nice face oil for my friends and myself.” He then asked, “How much do you sell it for?” I replied, “I don’t sell it; I just give it away.” He said, “Why don’t you make a business out of it? What’s the formula?” I said, “I don’t know the formula.” He asked, “So how do you make it the same way every time?” I answered, “I just know. I can do it with my eyes closed.” Afterward, he ordered the proper equipment online for scientific mixing and measuring. I made it five times the way I normally do, without measuring, pouring it into a cup, and it was perfect. The sixth time, I poured each of the 11 oils into a measuring cylinder, and he recorded the amount of each oil. That became the formula, and it hasn’t changed since that day. Later, I started sourcing quality oils from five different manufacturers and decided to get nicer bottles. A talented graphic designer, who also did the graphics for my Soho boutique ‘Linda Hopp,’ worked with me on the logo and packaging. The packaging turned out beautifully—simple and chic.
I had hand surgery, and my nephew came to take care of me. He walked into my apartment and asked, “What are all these bottles and oils doing here? What are you making?” I told him, “Oh, you know, I make this really nice face oil for my friends and myself.” He then asked, “How much do you sell it for?” I replied, “I don’t sell it; I just give it away.” He said, “Why don’t you make a business out of it? What’s the formula?” I said, “I don’t know the formula.” He asked, “So how do you make it the same way every time?” I answered, “I just know. I can do it with my eyes closed.” Afterward, he ordered the proper equipment online for scientific mixing and measuring. I made it five times the way I normally do, without measuring, pouring it into a cup, and it was perfect. The sixth time, I poured each of the 11 oils into a measuring cylinder, and he recorded the amount of each oil. That became the formula, and it hasn’t changed since that day. Later, I started sourcing quality oils from five different manufacturers and decided to get nicer bottles. A talented graphic designer, who also did the graphics for my Soho boutique ‘Linda Hopp,’ worked with me on the logo and packaging. The packaging turned out beautifully—simple and chic.

The biggest sales for the oil come from the renowned dermatologist Dr. David Colbert, MD (http://www.store.nydg.com). He is one of the top dermatologists in the country and also a beauty doctor with a large celebrity clientele. He recommends my oil to all his patients. He also conducted the clinical testing for me, using only humans, no animals, so it’s 100% medically tested and approved. All the ingredients are essential oils; RODIN olio lusso contains no chemicals and smells divine.

M: What are the 11 essential oils that are in your oil?
M: What are the 11 essential oils in your product?

L
Jasmine Oil,
Sweet Almond Oil,
Apricot Seed Oil,
Jojoba Oil,
Evening Primrose Oil,
Rose Hip,
Arnica Oil,
Calendula Oil,
Neroli Oil,
Sunflower Oil,
Argan Oil.

And you can check my website to see what they are and how they work.
LYou can also visit my website to learn more about each oil and its benefits.

Contact: info@oliolusso.com