When London ladies Katie Hillier and Luella Bartley were appointed directors at (aka Marc by Marc Jacobs), there is no doubt that a super-design duo was born. Concrete evidence surfaced when their graced (or should we say stomped?) the runway in February early this year - to deafening praise.

We headed down to the MATCHESFASHION.COM celebration of a/w 2014 last night, where we spoke to Katie Hillier about the debut collection.

ELLE: You and Luella have known each other for such a long time – what's the best thing about working together?

KH: Well, we’ve been working together for about 18 years, on and off. Of course, it’s great to have the support of your best friend. We’re the same age and we’ve kind of grown up together, so you have the same cultural references and experiences.

ELLE: The a/w 2014 show emitted a real sense of fearless female power – was feminism an inspiration?

KH: Yes, it’s underlying and you can see that spirit. I mean, I think you can take feminism in very many different ways, but it is empowerment to women, and that’s what we wanted to convey with what we did.

ELLE: Are you a feminist?

KH: I think that we both are. We’re both women, and we’re pro-woman. We’re women who want to work and enjoy our lives; so, yes.

ELLE: What’s your favourite piece in the a/w 2014 collection?

KH: I think my favourite thing was the ninja outfit with the green khaki jacket. Obviously Natalie [Westling, the model] made it come alive in her character, but it was great, because it said everything we wanted to say. Like, we’re here. Marc’s here.

ELLE: If you could describe the collection in five words, what would they be?

KH: Shouty. Bold. Independent. Spirited. Feisty.