‘I like to make a statement’: How Hannah Attalah set up Oceanus to create glamour swimwear

Andy Martin speaks to Hannah Attalah about going from dropping out of school at 17 to creating her own fashion brand

Attalah’s ultra-chic designs break free from the minimalist, functionalist style (Oceanus)

Sometimes you have to be a dropout to get anywhere. Hannah Attalah dropped out of school aged 17. She had a vision that she would one day create her own fashion brand,  which turned out to be prophetic. Rather than finish her A-levels, she went and set up Oceanus, her line of glamour swimwear for women.

Brought up in London, she was encouraged by her Irish mother to be creative and take risks. Her great-grandmother once sold sewing machines in Tipperary. But it was her Auntie Shirley who really initiated her into fashion around the age of 12 or 13. She introduced her to classic designers, mainly in vintage shops. One Of A Kind on Portobello Road was a regular haunt. “It has this amazing archive of the best designers of the past,” says Attalah. “The creme de la creme, Versace and Vivienne Westwood – I couldn’t afford any of it, but it was good research. For me it was like going to the library. I learned so much.”