Maria Cornejo hardly qualifies as a new kid — the noted luxury women’s fashion designer had a store in Nolita for 27 years and she’s been working in the industry since the mid-80s. But she has chosen Tribeca as the new home for her office, production team and shop, taking up residence in the beautiful storefront at 42 Walker, the former Luv, Michael space just east of Church.

Zero + Maria Cornejo — the line’s official name — has had a consistent design philosophy and also a distinct independent streak for decades.

“My designs are based on basic geometry — how a straight line meets with a curve; that’s what I find interesting,” she said when we met recently in the store along with her business partner, Marysia Woroniecka. “I’m a bit of a nerd, sorry.”

The clothes are deliberately not too size specific (“Women, we change sizes every week.”); there are never shoulder seams (Every woman has a different shoulder slope.”); and they are ultimately versatile (“It’s made to make you feel ageless.”).

“It’s you that gives it its shape,” said Marysia. “The clothes have a kind of quiet distinction. They don’t look like everyone else but they don’t scream ‘look at me.'”

Maria, who is originally from Chile and moved to England as a political refugee with her family when she was a child, moved with her own family to New York in 1996. She started her company in 1998 when she transformed a raw space in Nolita into her atelier and store, making garments with upcycled materials. Marysia joined her in 2006. (She chose the name, she said, because ‘zero’ neither adds or subtracts — “and it is one continuous line that does not have a beginning or an ending.”)

Everything is designed and produced entirely in New York City in the Garment District and Made in NY certified. The New York Times profiled Cornejo for her 25th anniversary, on the occasion of a lifetime achievement award in 2023 from the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Her brand has notably stayed independent of the fashion world’s hazards.

“I never meant to be a rebel,” Cornejo told The Times. “It was more just doing my stuff in a quiet way that I believed was best. I’m quite stubborn. I wanted to make wearable clothes that would feel good, but I didn’t want boring mom clothes. The goal was to have a great collection, be able to pay everybody on time. Pay myself. Be home to see my kids. And have a vacation every once in a while.”

She was ready for a move, and considered the Village but then found this space. At first, she said, she wasn’t convinced, “but I fell in love with the skylight.” And the landlord was accommodating. They scraped the walls down to the brick, added raffia rugs and a plywood circular changing room. Plus the plants — a visual palate cleanser for Maria — are happy.

“It’s still very residential but we have a clients who live and work in Tribeca a lot on the art world,” said Marysia. “Having all the galleries here is good for us — I know how buzzy it is when there’s a hot show going on and I thought it could fit.”

Maria creates new pieces with new fabrics each season, but the idea is to add to your collection — not throw out the old. The pieces are meant to last, made from fabrics produced in Japan and France that age gracefully.

“As a New Yorker I know you want clothes that take you from morning till night,” Maria said (she and Marysia live in Brooklyn and they have an archive and design studio in the Navy Yard). “And as a woman, people trust me to create things that make them look good.”

Zero + Maria Cornejo
42 Walker | Church & Broadway
212 925 3849
Sunday to Wednesday: noon to 6p
Thursday to Saturday: noon to 7p