In the midst of NYFW, the Dominican-born, New York&ndash;based designer opens up about building a brand rooted in instinct, community, and a deeper understanding of how women want to feel in their clothes.

For Dwarmis Concepci&oacute;n, starting her namesake label wasn&rsquo;t sparked by one grand, cinematic moment&mdash;it grew organically from instinct. Long before there was a brand, there were handmade pieces: dresses she&rsquo;d craft for herself, experimental silhouettes, even bags made just for fun. When strangers began stopping her to ask where her clothes were from&mdash;and then asking if she could make something for them&mdash;it became clear that what started as personal expression had resonance.
That quiet momentum eventually led to a collaboration with Dominican boutique Ind&oacute;mita, where every piece sold out and the connection with customers felt immediate and honest.&nbsp;Today, the DWARMIS woman reflects that philosophy. Elegance, in Concepci&oacute;n&rsquo;s world, isn&rsquo;t about stiffness or formality; it&rsquo;s about intention and comfort coexisting.
As she prepared to show at New York Fashion Week, Concepci&oacute;n remained grounded in process. She keeps production local, works closely with immigrant communities, and edits her collections with restraint, choosing longevity over excess.&nbsp;
Below, L'OFFICIEL speaks exclusively with Dwarmis Concepci&oacute;n on her namesake brand.&nbsp;

L'OFFICIEL: After years working in the fashion industry, what was the moment you knew you wanted to build a brand rooted in your own point of view?
DWARMIS CONCEPCI&Oacute;N: There wasn&rsquo;t a single dramatic moment; it happened very naturally. I was always making things for myself: clothes, little experiments, even bags just for fun. I&rsquo;d wear them out, and people would constantly ask where they were from. When I said I made them, they started asking if I could make something for them too. That slowly turned into a lot of custom dresses and special pieces made one by one. The real shift came when I had the opportunity to collaborate with Ind&oacute;mita, a store in the Dominican Republic. The response was incredible; everything sold, and the connection felt immediate and honest. Seeing women truly respond to what I was making was the moment it clicked. I realized I had a distinct point of view and a deep understanding of women; not just how they want to look, but how they want to feel. That&rsquo;s when I knew it was time to make it real.
LO: Your work balances elegance with effortlessness. How would you describe the DWARMIS woman today, and how has she evolved alongside you?
DC: I&rsquo;ve always seen the DWARMIS woman as the everyday woman. She is many things at once&mdash;the boss, the mother, the friend. She goes from meetings to school drop-offs, to cocktails, parties, galas, and dancing. She&rsquo;s always on the move. Because of that, she wants to feel comfortable but still held and supported throughout the entire day. She moves, works, dances, travels, and exists fully in her clothes. As I&rsquo;ve evolved, she has too; there&rsquo;s more ease, more trust in the body, and a deeper understanding of how women actually live. To me, elegance isn&rsquo;t about formality. It&rsquo;s about intention and comfort coexisting.
LO: Growing up with Dominican roots and building your life in New York&mdash;how do those two worlds show up in your design process, even when they&rsquo;re not explicit?
DC: They show up in the contrasts. The warmth, sensuality, and tactility I grew up with in the Dominican Republic live in the textures, colors, and the way fabric touches the body. New York brings structure, discipline, and clarity. Even when the references aren&rsquo;t literal, that duality is always present; softness and strength, instinct and precision. It&rsquo;s the way I think, the way I move, and the way I design.
LO: TIERRA explores origin and the idea of matter before form. Did working on this collection shift the way you think about where your creativity comes from?
DC: Yes, very much. TIERRA made me slow down and listen more deeply. It reminded me that creativity doesn&rsquo;t come from forcing ideas, but from observing, touching, and allowing time and the elements to do their work. Thinking about dust and water; materials that shape everything quietly; made me reflect on my own process. My creativity comes from letting the materials lead, allowing them to flow, mold, and transform, and responding to what they want to become. It&rsquo;s about trusting that process and shaping something different and unique from it.

LO: You keep your entire design and production process local to New York. What does being physically close to every step of making mean to you as a designer?
DC: Being close to the process keeps me honest and real. I can touch the garments, adjust them on the body, speak directly with the people making them, and respond intuitively. It creates accountability and care. For me, design doesn&rsquo;t end with a sketch; it lives in fittings, conversations, and small decisions made in real time. Staying local also means working side by side with my people; being present, communicating openly, sewing, making patterns, and truly being part of the team. Many of the people I work with are immigrants like me, and there&rsquo;s a shared understanding and mutual support in that. It&rsquo;s not just about production; it&rsquo;s about community, trust, and building something together.
LO: Working in smaller, more intentional capsule collections requires restraint. How do you decide what doesn&rsquo;t make it into a DWARMIS collection?
DC: I ask myself whether a piece truly belongs. Does it serve the woman I&rsquo;m designing for? Does it add something meaningful, or is it just noise? I&rsquo;ve learned to let go of ideas I love if they don&rsquo;t support the larger story. Restraint, for me, is also a way of being more responsible. I don&rsquo;t want to contribute to excess or waste, or to the pace at which fashion consumes and discards. I want to create pieces that last; clothes that are timeless, that can be worn again and again, and continue to feel relevant over time. To me, that&rsquo;s a deeper form of sustainability.
LO: As a Latinx designer supporting local communities, how do responsibility and representation factor into the way you build your brand?
DC: I feel a deep sense of responsibility, but not in a performative way. Representation, to me, is about presence and consistency; showing up, hiring locally, collaborating thoughtfully, and honoring craftsmanship. I want DWARMIS to reflect care, inclusivity, and dignity in how it&rsquo;s made and who it supports.&nbsp;Supporting my community and my people is deeply personal. Working together feels like family; it&rsquo;s built on trust, care, and shared experience. Being Latinx is simply part of who I am, not something I put on for visibility. It naturally informs my values and the way I move through the world and build my brand.
LO: Showing at NYFW can feel like a milestone. What does this moment represent for you personally, beyond the runway?
DC: Beyond the runway, this moment feels like affirmation. It&rsquo;s a reminder that there is space for building something slower and more intentional; something rooted in care, passion, and purpose. I do this from the bottom of my heart. Design is not just my work; it&rsquo;s part of who I am. I&rsquo;ve been creating since I was six years old, and that connection has never left me. This moment represents growth, resilience, and clarity around what I want to share with the world. For me, NYFW isn&rsquo;t just about visibility; it&rsquo;s about standing firmly in who I am as a designer, honoring the journey it took to get here, and creating space to support others along the way.

Dwarmis Concepción Is Designing With Intention, From the Ground Up

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