Zero + Maria Cornejo opened in 1998 as a purely retail concept when, prompted by a desire to re-connect with the core of her ideas about design, cutting and garment construction, Chilean-born designer Maria Cornejo transformed a raw space in New York’s Nolita into a very personal store and atelier named Zero. The name was an expression of a pure vision: a number that neither adds nor subtracts; it is, rather, a point of departure. The garments are still founded on the original principles of taking the fundamental geometric shapes and transforming them into unexpectedly simple garments based on sophisticated cuts and angles using volume and circular shapes as a starting point. Garments are often draped and cut from one piece of fabric, use as few seams as possible to fit and flatter as many women as possible and utilize luxurious new fabrics and original prints. The collection is also available at more than 80 of the best stores worldwide, including Barneys New York, Bergdorf Goodman, Ikram Chicago, Hanwha Galleria Seoul, Harvey Nichols Hong Kong.