interview by CAMILLE BAVERA and DRAGOS MITROFAN
Tyler Billinger knows a thing or two about a strong business, community, and how our path to success — and finding oneself — is never linear. Perhaps best known as the CMO of Crosby Studios, a 360-creative studio based in Paris, Billinger was a Francophile long before Crosby opened a new branch in Paris in 2021. Raised in California, he first moved to Paris in his teens, and then back again permanently with his partner during the pandemic. In parallel with his role at the studio, he has recently launched a second brand, La Terra di Neena, which he describes as an ‘olive-oil and objects brand’. It bears the same name as their Tuscan villa, named after Billinger’s mother.
Although nowadays he’s a notable presence in the spatial design world, and a burgeoning olive oil connoisseur, Billinger was once an American-Italian kid growing up in California who dropped-out of University, and became a key-pin in Jeremy Scott’s Moschino empire when he was only 21.
jacket ROBERTO CAVALLI
shoes and glasses GUCCI
necklace CHROME HEARTS
jeans BLUEMARBLE
You first studied liberal arts in Paris before moving to NYC to study fashion communications at FIT, and then dropped out entirely. How come? Did you not like university?
It’s not that I didn’t like it… I was the person who was never good with fitting in a classroom and sitting quietly, listening to a lecture. I really commend people who can sit through an eight hour school day and absorb information, but I felt like I needed to always be on the go, trying and failing and learning. So when I got offered a job super young [at 20], I didn’t even think about not taking it. Most people attend University to get a job in their field, and I already had that.
And that job was working in PR for Jeremy Scott at Moschino. How did that opportunity come about?
I was interning for a few months, then my boss at the time was leaving, and it just all fell into place.
shirt LOUIS VUITTON
shoes and underwear ERL
necklace CHROME HEARTS
jeans ACNE STUDIOS
belt DIESEL
I feel like we all have a big takeaway from our first real job. What was yours?
I was there for almost four years, and we were a super small team — just me, my boss, and an army of interns. I wore so many different hats, which it prepared me well for Crosby, and learned a lot of professional skills that university wouldn’t have taught me. It’s how a lot of fashion jobs were back then. If I would’ve taken a traditional university route, and then started working, I would’ve had no idea what I was doing.
My boss, Juliana Shyu, was really hard on me, but she’s one of my closest friends to this day. Juliana was my first big mentor and I still call her asking for advice on things.
I feel like that was the best, most fun time in fashion back then — everything's changed so much now…
It was the best and the worst back then. When people say, “You just could never imagine,” it's true. I did some tasks that I could never imagine giving to my assistant or interns now, but it was normal back then.
Would you share a “You could never” instance?
I don’t want to get in trouble [laughs].. Just overly personal tasks, but it was normal back then when people didn’t have social media.
I noticed that you said specifically you’re ‘American-Italian’, rather than ‘Italian-American’. Why is that?
I feel more American for sure. I grew up in the states, and although I definitely have an Italian family, and we have traditions that only Italian families would do, I lived a very California style life.
Only as I’ve gotten older my family has embraced our Italian heritage a lot more. Maybe it’s because of the La Terra di Neena project I'm working on in Tuscany now but my life is really centred around Italy now more than the United States. If you asked me when I was a teenager or kid if I could imagine my life in Italy I’d say no…
shoes and underwear ERL
necklace CHROME HEARTS
jeans ACNE STUDIOS
belt DIESEL
So, back to La Terra di Neena, which you’re currently working on. Was that an intentional way of reconnecting with your roots?
It definitely started that way, and now it’s turned into our daily reality, and is becoming a reflection of who we are as a brand.
Would you call it a family brand? I know you mentioned that your stepfather mows the lawn on the estate.
Yes, Neena is my mom’s name — we named the house and brand after her. It’s actually our family property, and my stepdad does all the farming and gardening.
full look GUCCI
And now it sounds like you’re expanding the brand beyond household products to a new Paris store? How’s that coming along?
We’re opening in October! It also plays with a lot of design elements within the house like giant light fixtures made from deconstructed cars. It’s a continuation of showing how the property can live in different spaces from retail to olive oil objects. And now we’re also in the process of purchasing a cafe in our town in Tuscany and renovating it to become a cafe and restaurant.
Wow, you’re foraying even deeper. Are you very interested in gastronomy and cooking?
Not really — I never really cook. But that’s also an expression with the restaurant. It's going to be very simple, farm-to-table dishes. Maybe only 2-3 really simple dishes, sourced locally and from our property.
shirt THE ATTICO
jeans ACNE STUDIOS
necklace CHROME HEARTS
shoes BALENCIAGA
What’s your favourite hat to wear in all of this? From olive oil connoisseur, to marketing Crosby, to working on installations around the world, it sounds like your closet is quite full, so to speak.
I think this new venture (La Terra di Neena) allowed me to be more creative, because with Crosby, I handle the business side of things — partnerships, collaborations, and communications. I love it, but with La Terra I'm much more on the creative side, so I can really dive into the food industry, which is completely new to me. I get to experiment with it and have my own twist on it.
It’s your new baby!
It’s more like my new young child.
top CHROME HEARTS
shorts DIOR MEN
shoes CHANEL
shirt LOUIS VUITTON
It seems like you enjoy building brands that both rely on and drive a sense of community. Both Crosby Studios and La Terra are about creating spaces and products to drive a sense of community and oneness.
What’s always worked well has been building a strong community and network of people around us. Of course, we’ve worked with some huge brands, but we always like to say it’s not the name of the brand we work with, but the people behind the brand.
For me, it’s like all things in my life, it’s really about your community, people around you and people you have synergy with. Even this interview now. For me that’s how I approach everything in life professionally and personally.
You never know — sometimes I meet someone in a meeting and I wonder why I met this person. There’s always a reason. I’ve had moments of meeting people, and then five years later they work for a random company and we end up doing a crazy project together. You never know where meeting new people can lead.
TEAM CREDITS:
talent TYLER BILLINGER
photography DRAGOS MITROFAN
styling MAX KATT
hair and makeup GIUSEPPE MARLETTA
styling assistant SAHEL
location CROSBYSTUDIOS GALLERY
interview CAMILLE BAVERA and DRAGOS MITROFAN
