Dynamic Trio: Galia, Osnat and Idan Lahav

Osnat and Idan, how long have you been working together and when did you both join Galia Lahav?

Galia founded the company over 30 years ago. Osnat joined the brand 10 years ago and Idan joined 6 years ago. Ever since then we have been running the company together.

Did you always know you wanted to work with your mother when you were younger? Were there other careers you ever considered?

Osnat: I never thought I’d end up working with my mother. I studied law and practiced it for almost 10 years. At one point I felt like I needed a change and my mother asked me to come and help her with a few things in the business. Little did I know that I’d stay with her for more than 10 years. Although it wasn’t my first and obvious choice, I always loved and appreciated fashion and creativity so I do feel like I’m in the right place.

Idan: I never really thought about it since my background hasn’t got anything to do with Fashion. I come from a hi-tech background, I worked in the tech industry and ran two startups of my own, so working for my mother’s company wasn’t the ‘natural step’ for me at all. The interest in the fashion industry came only after I joined the brand. I discovered a whole new world I wasn’t espoused to which is the business of fashion and I find it fascinating. My challenge is to combine both tech and fashion worlds together, and this is what drives me forward constantly.

What specific roles do each of you play in the company?

Galia: I’m the company president. I let Idan and Osnat take the lead on the management, but I still insist to have the final eye and say regarding the big picture. It’s important to me to be involved in all aspects…from the design of course, to creative, marketing, branding etc. But I trust my children and I know they have the vision and energy to lead the brand to its’ exciting future. One of the things I really like to do is to meet the teams worldwide and guide them in the opening process of new stores. I get excited every time I see the company I founded 30 years ago reaching new heights.

Osnat: My role covers the entire logistics part of the company. I’m in charge of the manufacturing, production, merchandising and human resources. I’m also extremely involved in the design process from concept  to production.

Idan: My two main fields of operation are Marketing and Sales/Business development.
Working in the luxury sector is really exciting because you always feel in a race to develop new products. It's an addiction.

What is your favorite part of working together?

Galia: As a mother and a business owner, I couldn’t be more proud and happy with this arrangement. I am able to spend time with my children, and I get to have 2 extremely talented CEO’s who I trust, and have their best interests at heart for the brand, and that’s a fact.

Osnat: Knowing that we are running something so successful and big together, being a result of mutual effort, gives me great satisfaction.

Idan: I think being able to experience these enormous peaks and highlights together is one of my favorite things about working together. For example when we announced to be part of the Fédération de la Haute Couture it was a shared experience that we all got to live together. The most tremendous thing is that we bring the family atmosphere to the company and all the employees feel like one big family.

What is the most challenging part about working together?

Galia: Fashion is not an easy business, it brings a lot of stress, expectations and tension. Things sometimes get heated, and it’s normal and natural in our field of work. But luckily we’ve been working together for so long and have learned to separate work from our personal life.

Osnat: Probably being able to put aside work and concentrate on being a family. When something major happens at the office and we get together for a birthday celebration that same day or for a family dinner we naturally gravitate towards talking about it and, well, basically working. Learning to know when it’s time to be a family and not co-workers is a work in progress but we’ve definitely become much better at it over the years.

Idan: I think for me the biggest challenge has always been about finding the balance between work and personal life. Do I call my mom Galia at work or Mom? Do we bring up family things during a meeting? Just stuff like this. Today, I can say that part of the core values of our brand and what characterizes us, is the domestic feeling we have here. All our employees feel connected to the brand like they’re part of the family and this is something we take pride in and that couldn't have happened unless we brought in this type of mindset.

What inspires each of you?

Galia: Women inspire me. Their ambition, intelligence and power to conquer the world, while remaining elegant and divine. We are mothers, wifes, friends, business women and we manage to do it all so gracefully. They are my inspiration, and they are what I have in mind when I design.

Osnat: I get inspired by things that move me and drive me to think. It can be art, traveling, music, people and basically anything that brings out an emotion for me. I find that innovative concepts and ideas also inspire me significantly.

Idan:  Being the geek that I am, I find a lot of inspiration in Lego, toys, and even children’s books. It helps me tap into my inner child who is not afraid to take risks and see the world in a clean, exciting way. I also feel very inspired by the ocean. The sense of adventure and endless limits is refreshing and always brings me to a clear state of mind. And of course, I try to always stay up to date and generate new ideas by following closely what’s going on in our industry. I’m a huge BOF fan.

How have you pivoted or change course in anyway during the pandemic and this current environment?

Right away when the Pandemic started getting serious and spreading out, we understood we needed to take measure. We pride ourselves to put customer service at the top of our priorities. We deeply care about our community and we want to provide them, not just with great products, but also with relevant ones. Therefore we launched our new Pret-A-Porter line which is sold online, allowing brides to purchase their gown and receive it within just 2 weeks. We also offer Free shipping and returns worldwide. This way brides who can’t shop physically for their wedding gown can find a solution. We have also widened our price range with this line and created styles that might be a good fit for smaller, more intimate weddings. We anticipate this line becoming more popular in the months to come. We are constantly working on understanding the market these days and what they need. We work fast and try to listen to what our community needs above all.

Galia, how do you think your brand has changed since both Osnat and Idan have joined Galia Lahav? 

When I started the business, I knew I wanted to make beautiful gowns for all sorts of women. I cared about making each woman feel like she’s the best version of herself. This is my legacy. But as the world continues to change and evolve we cannot look away from what technology has brought to the table. Idan and Osnat both helped with keeping the company up to date, and taking the right steps at the right time to grow to where we are today. With their leadership we were able to expand to the global market, today we have over 80 boutiques worldwide and 6 flagship stores. We built a strong social media presence and nurtured a community of over 2M followers on Instagram. With their help I was able to make a life time dream of mine come true and be the first Israeli fashion designer to be recognized by the French Federation of Haute Couture and to be actually presenting in Paris Couture Fashion Week along with names like Chanel, Dior and Givenchy. An achievement I couldn’t have accomplished without their skills, vision and hard work.

Describe what it’s like to work with each other?

Working with your family can be challenging at times but it is also rewarding and comforting, because you know you have partners by your side that care about the mission and are devoted to the business in the same way you are. For us, this is not just a workplace. This is our legacy. We get to create something meaningful together and be a part of each other’s lives in an active way. Being able to enjoy one another’s success and also support each other through challenging times, is something that we don’t take for granted. Every day is a new adventure but we know we make a good team.

Can you think of a specific memory that stands out as one of your favorites in terms of working together?

When we opened our first Flagship store in LA we all flew together for the opening event. The moment we saw this huge store, in one of the most luxurious boulevards in Los Angeles, with our name up there next to all the big, high end, luxury brands was a moment we will never forget. Seeing Galia speechless, with tears in her eyes, is one of our greatest achievements throughout this whole journey together.