Fear Not
Innovation in design comes naturally to Clear Creative Director Emin Kadi and Editor Ivan Kalafatic. The lack of fear is prevalent in the many "firsts" this fashion design magazine has pioneered, including the first to have a transparent cover (on every issue-hence the name), magnetic paper, rice paper and the first to produce an entire issue in plastic. But these unique materials present equally unique production challenges. "No matter how great a printer you find, chances are they won't admit their inexperience in producing the final product," says Kadi. The solution? Lots of communication - and teamwork. "The best thing to do is to get everyone to believe in the project and rally around it."

For Kadi and Kalafatic, Clear is a changing environment that houses what traditionalists may see as impossibilities in the design world. Kadi says naivety - and a lack of exposure to the "right" and "wrong" influences in the publishing world - has actually benefited them. "When it's virgin territory, you come up with new and refreshing designs," explains Kadi, who is also a fashion photographer. Five years ago, the two of them "slapped" the magazine together in two weeks on a laptop and then distributed it at a fashion show in New York. "We started very intuitively," agrees Kalafatic.