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How Debora Saveriano built OUMA around design for music and fashion
Debora Saveriano's approach at OUMA emphasizes deep listening and co-creation in design, particularly within the realms of music and fashion. By prioritizing the understanding of an artist's identity and cultural context before any visual work begins, OUMA aims to create meaningful and enduring brand identities that resonate with communities. This strategy highlights the importance of empathy and narrative in brand development, suggesting that brands should focus on authentic storytelling to connect with their audiences.
The Brand Identity: Debora Saveriano believes in co-creation and dialogue in design. Before anything is created at OUMA, the London-based creative house she founded, there’s a process of deep listening: conversations, questions, research that goes far beyond sound into culture, heritage, community and atmosphere. The result is identities built to carry meaning forward, long after the moment that created them has passed.
In our conversation, she talks about the Sonic Portrait process that sits at the heart of every project, what fashion taught her about precision and intention, and why the most important skill a creative director can have has nothing to do with design. TBI Hi Debora! How are things at OUMA? DS Hey! Really good, thank you. We just got back from the International Music Summit in Ibiza, which was a great moment to connect with people in the creative and music world.
Lots of energy is going into OUMA right now. TBI You describe OUMA as a creative house rather than a studio or agency – what does that distinction mean to you? DS The word house has a history to it. Fashion houses were called that quite literally; couturiers worked from actual townhouses, maisons, where clients came to them. It wasn't a factory or a showroom, it was an intimate space with a name, a sensibility, a person behind it. A place where a distinct point of view lived and persisted across time. That’s the feeling I wanted for OUMA.
A place where different things coexist, where conversation happens naturally, where people come to create and exchange ideas, not just to receive a deliverable. We start with people. We sit with someone’s vision, understand what it really is, before we ever touch a single visual, and that shapes everything about how we work. I think the word ‘house’ also speaks to continuity. Fashion houses, music houses, spaces that have a soul beyond any one project. I wanted that same depth for OUMA.
Something that carries forward rather than closes when the project ends. We sit with someone’s vision before we touch a single visual. We sit with someone’s vision before we touch a single visual. TBI You’ve worked with brands like Zegna and Net-a-Porter, as well as musicians like Dardust, Megatronic and Nadine El Roubi. What led you to design for fashion and music? DS I studied Fashion Communication & Styling, while on weekends I was photographing clubs and events, trying to understand how a space or an artist builds a feeling.
My graduation project was creating a complete visual world for a band, which, looking back, was basically OUMA before I had a name for it. At the same time, with two friends, we were organising our own nights – vinyl only, northern soul, R&B, soul music, paired with illustration and photography exhibitions. Identity, community, atmosphere, visuals, it was all very connected. So much fun! I moved to London in 2014 from Italy to intern at a creative studio. The creative director was my former university teacher, a Condé Nast photographer, and I was thrown straight into it. Fashion shoots, editorials, set styling, layouts, retouching.
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Debora Saveriano's approach to integrating deep listening and co-creation in design for music and fashion is significant for brand identity development, offering actionable insights for brand strategy professionals.