The one thing you should know about Karen Binns is that she’s truly one of a kind. Not only is she Global Fashion Director at 10 Magazine and 10 Men, she’s also a talented stylist, consultant and creative director. Despite working and living in London, the Brooklyn native never lost her American directedness, as well as some of her style convictions. Binns is bold, honest and opinionated, three qualities that make her stand out.

Today, she mentors young designers in London and continues to style fashion and artists, which she has done for years. Last June, she acted as moderator for the Fashion Talks in Antwerp and the audience loved her refreshing lack of airs and graces, as well as her sense of humor. More recently, she was the jury president for the Belgian Fashion Awards, and will be in Antwerp during the official November ceremony.

We caught up with Binns to discuss her unusual creative path, how she helps young talents to grow, and who her favorite Belgian designer is.

London Fashion Week is just around the corner. Which creative projects have you been working on?

I work as a stylist, creative mentor and podcast host with this initiative called ‘Hi-Fi’, whose aim is to support students doing their first presentation or show. It was founded by Liam Gleeson and is powered by his creative agency called ‘Hidden Agency’. I’m currently mentoring 3 talents that will present their work during London Fashion Week. We’re going to make it immersive, because we desperately need new ways to approach fashion, don’t we?

I couldn’t agree more!

I’ve also been working with this young female designer in London and coaching her as a consultant. Sometimes, designers need their style to be elevated, even if they already sell. It’s good for someone my age to collaborate with a much younger person, so I know what’s going on with that generation and how they look at things.

What do these young designers learn from you?

What I do goes far beyond the traditional role of a stylist. I advise and offer guidance to them, which is crucial. I mentor them in order to make sure they have the right strategy and can improve on their positioning. In a way, it’s like selling to a younger version of me and knowing exactly what I don’t want. I’m putting myself in the shoes of the consumer those designers create for and most of the time they have no idea who their target audience is.

I find myself surrounded with younger people in my field as well, which is fashion journalism. What do you learn from younger designers?

I often realize that they don’t think about the bigger picture and also try getting some of my ideas without committing. I make sure they mention me as their stylist and make it transparent with them from the very beginning. Trust me, I worked with a lot of people who never bothered crediting my work as a stylist, and there is no way I would let that happen now.

That’s shocking and sad to hear. And this is definitely something that should change within our industry.

I started at the same time as stylist Jane How, but I wasn’t someone that fit the mold. I don’t play games with people or change my behavior depending on who comes into the room. I wasn’t the yes girl that way, and I wasn’t the skinny girl either. My opinions were too strong, and I learned that people only let you in when they can take credit for your success.

Do you think your honesty threatens people? There’s a lot of jealousy and envy within this business.

Well, would you say I’m a threatening person?

Not at all, but I’m very honest, too, and people can be intimidated by that. By the way, I thought you did a great job on the Belgian Fashion Awards jury. You let everyone voice their opinions, but still had that leadership quality.

I’m glad it went so well and I’m happy Sarah Mower joined us. Sarah is someone I’ve known for years and I value her expertise. I also enjoyed my experience during the Fashion Talks where I got to interview journalist and podcaster Recho Omondi. The audience was laughing and cheering.

What’s your relationship with Belgian fashion, and why does it matter to you?

I’m a Margiela girl and going to his very first show with my friend Andre Walker was a revelation. It was groundbreaking.

Over the past two years, I noticed it was getting more and more difficult to attend shows. Have you felt the same as a stylist?

Definitely. You see people in the front row who are sycophants with no experience or valid opinions. And people who do incredible work are often given the worst seats.

Where does your passion for fashion come from?

It came from film. When I was a club bouncer in New York, I would always look at Hollywood’s Golden Age and be inspired by Bette Davis or Joan Crawford. Those looks got me noticed somehow, which was funny because I was just doing my thing. I came from Brooklyn but looked like this artsy intellectual London girl, which I clearly wasn’t. Blame it on the cinema!