Inside the World of Love by Venus

There is something about Love by Venus that is so immediately compelling to the hopeless romantics of today. Its instinctive femininity feels effortlessly reminiscent of a flirtatious, imaginative woman who does not shy away from leaning into her fanciful desires. 

Long before ribbon-adorned coquette became a dominant fashion phenomenon that swept social media, Jingyi Luo, founder of clothing brand Love by Venus, was crafting her own collection of pointelle tops and dreamy sets lined with lace that were ahead of their time. Founded at just 14 during the lockdown, she was infatuated with expressing her creative second nature through art and more specifically, clothing ideation and design. What started as a furtive passion to share her art and vision of beauty, eventually transformed into something much larger than her: a business that required a persevering balance of creative ideation and discipline.

Raised by her parents who had each been artists at one point in their lives, Jingyi’s imagination and creativity were encouraged from a young age.

“I remember countless weekends with mum spent sketching on museum floors and doing watercolour still lifes in the kitchen. Any complaint about boredom, would be countered with another empty page and pencils. I developed this infatuation for creating something that I found to be beautiful. Hence, I think that these very primitive moments of my childhood shaped the initial way that I viewed beauty and aesthetics, not really as something that represents a certain concept or a lifestyle, but as something intimate, handmade, and whimsical.”

Her early familiarity with creation is now the backbone of Love by Venus. “Opposed to chasing revenue or recognition,” she says, “I was chasing the addictive feeling of showing my art to the world.”

Read our interview with Jingyi below.

Before we begin, can you tell us about you as a founder? How would you describe yourself, including where and when your creative side began, your entrepreneurial nature, and the values you hold close — and how do those qualities shape how you have built Love by Venus?

“Growing up, I always held a curiosity and wonder towards tangible things, which flowered into a desire to create and eventually developed entrepreneurial meaning through my parents' encouragement. I remember when I was in elementary school, I constantly begged my parents for the dolls and toys that all my friends had, and instead of buying them for me, they encouraged imagination and creativity by endorsing hands on, tactile methods and encouraged me to make the toys I had so desperately wished for.

At the time I resented them for it, but in hindsight it taught me that my own imagination could be a form of agency, and I fostered a relationship between mind and matter from a young age. Both of my parents were artists at some point in their lives, so creativity was always second nature for me. I remember countless weekends with mum spent sketching on museum floors and doing watercolour still lifes in the kitchen. Any complaint about boredom, would be countered with another empty page and pencils. I developed this infatuation for creating something that I found to be beautiful. Hence, I think that these very primitive moments of my childhood shaped the initial way that I viewed beauty and aesthetics, not really as something that represents a certain concept or a lifestyle, but as something intimate, handmade, and whimsical.

This sense of wonder and care for beauty and creation is a value I still hold very close, and it really underpins Love by Venus. I started the brand when I was 14, during lockdown, and it was a furtive, obsessive passion. At that point, I didn’t even think of myself as an entrepreneur, I really was just making things because I loved to and because I felt so inspired to. Opposed to chasing revenue or recognition, I was chasing the addictive feeling of showing my art to the world. Intrinsically, this authenticity allowed the brand to grow organically, and my audience formed around an emotional intimacy and an understood intention.

As the brand grew, the entrepreneurial side naturally came into play, but even now, I truly believe that if I haven’t thought about something deeply or creatively enough, it simply doesn’t sell. For me, business and creativity are definitely not separate and I think they both require perseverance, confidence and innovation.”

The name Love by Venus exudes a lot of softness and femininity. What does the name represent to you, and how does that translate into the emotional world of the brand?

“For a long time, fine art was my medium, and I was always holistically mesmerised with the European Renaissance and the way women were portrayed during that period. The name ‘Love by Venus’ is derived from Botticelli’s masterpiece ‘The Birth of Venus’. I find the painting nostalgic, soft, and feminine, but it also commands power and strength. Botticelli conveys Venus’ energy through her grace and gentleness, and I’ve always been drawn to that idea of finding power within softness. This power might seem understated or fragile, but femininity is one of the only powers that have been immortalised, and I want my designs to translate this same strength.

Simultaneously, I’m also a bit of an astrology nerd. In astrology, Venus is the planet that governs love, beauty, femininity, art, pleasure, and the way we experience and express desire. It’s associated with aesthetics, relationships, sensuality, and the things that make life feel romantic and meaningful. That symbolism resonates too with me because it aligned perfectly with what I wanted to create.”

Who is the Love by Venus woman? How do you hope she moves and feels when she wears your pieces?

“The Love by Venus woman is sentimental, nostalgic, free-spirited and confident. She is drawn to nature, to softness, and to the simple, ephemeral beauty that surrounds her. She values feeling free, romantic, and emotionally connected to the world around her. She loves to frolic. The composition and construction of my designs are created with this free spirit in mind, allowing playfulness and ease. Each piece can be worn both gently and boldly, dressed up or down, so that she can face life with confidence and liberation.”

What is your creative process like when you design a piece? Do you design individually, or with an entire collection in mind? Moreover, where do you get the most inspiration from – imagery, film, music, memories?

“My creative process shifts with each collection, but it almost always begins with being inspired by a place. As a frequent traveller, I’m inspired by the environments I move through and by the memories of people I meet. I often begin by imagining a specific location and asking myself how a piece of clothing or fabric might interact with the elements there. From there, I refine the idea by finding muses in people I admire and building outward from them. I ask myself: how would she style this? Where would she wear it? What kind of day is she having? The process becomes almost fictional, like constructing a small narrative or play.”

Love by Venus feels very intentionally curated as opposed to being trend-driven. I remember discovering your pieces some time ago (around 2021 or 2022) and feeling that they anticipated, and perhaps even helped shape, the more coquette, feminine wave in fashion that followed. How do you approach creating work that feels so intuitive and timeless, rather than reactive to trends? Have there been any challenges in staying true to your vision throughout the years that Love by Venus has lived online?

“You’re absolutely right, I think we were definitely quite early to that coquette, pink-bows-and-lace wave, and in many ways that coincidental timing really helped kickstart the brand. However for me, that aesthetic has never really been a “trend.” It’s something that I hope you’ll continue to see in my work for Love by Venus, because it comes from instinct rather than prediction. In the beginning, I was creating from intuition, without thinking too much about where fashion was headed. I was a little naïve in believing that everything I made after that would land in the same way, and of course, it didn’t. It became a learning curve to realise that not every idea will resonate instantly, and that’s okay.

Creating work that feels intuitive rather than reactive is challenging, especially in an industry that constantly demands newness. There’s so much pressure to keep up, to always be responding to the next trend or moment. With the internet, it’s incredibly easy to “blow up” quickly, and just as easy to start chasing short-term engagement instead of longevity. However, I genuinely believe that the constant demand for “the next thing” is damaging to creative people. We’re expected to impress over and over again, as if ideas can be endlessly produced without consequence, but that’s not how creativity works. Thoughtful work needs time. It needs space to be refined, questioned, experimented with, discarded, and rebuilt. I try to honour that process by slowing down and approaching every step with care and intention. I don’t believe in rushing just to keep up. Instead, I focus on creating pieces that are well-made, and capable of holding a sense of timelessness.”

Building a physical brand as a young founder can often come with a lot of pressure often shaped by unseen forces pulling you in many different directions at once. What personal challenges have you encountered while building Love by Venus, and how have you learned to navigate or resist those pulls?

“I think a lot of it came down to naivety and having to learn things spontaneously, rather than knowing everything in advance and executing it perfectly. When I first started, I didn’t fully understand how volatile the fashion industry could be, or how it’s profoundly shaped by cycles of change and trends. I also carried this idea that success happens in a neat, linear way. I remember feeling really disheartened during a period when I shifted my focus toward high school and my online engagement dipped. It felt like I was moving backwards, even though I was just being present in another important part of my life. That taught me to trust myself more and to accept that growth isn’t always visible or immediate. I’ve also felt pressure around not having a traditional background in business or marketing. In the beginning, I was often self-conscious working with models, photographers, and collaborators who seemed far more experienced than I was. But over time, I’ve learned that everyone is still figuring things out in their own way. Building this brand has taught me to be gentler with myself and to be open to change and growth.”

Conversely, which moments have affirmed to you most that you are on the right path? That what you are building deeply aligns with your path and is needed within the fashion Industry?

“I think that the fashion industry needs more young creatives to kind of step up and give it a go, despite how daunting it can be. One of the most affirming moments for me was hosting my first ever pop-up in my hometown of Melbourne last year. Being able to meet people in person, to see them touch the garments and share their stories with me, was incredibly grounding for me. So many people told me that my pieces reminded them of their childhood, and that hearing my story had encouraged them to reconnect with their own creativity. These precious moments where I am able to connect with people offer so many new and arcane perspectives to me, and establish that my purpose is not only a means to dress people, but also to manifest a community built by memory and shared experiences.”

Can you tell us about a collection or a piece that resonates most with you, along with the story behind creating it?

“Recently, the collection that has resonated with me the most is our 2025 Summer Collection. It was inspired by my time living in France and by this idea of the woman from ‘Le Sud’. I became really immersed in old French and Italian cinema, especially the colouring and mood of films like ‘Purple Noon’ and ‘Pierrot le Fou’. I was designing for a woman who has given up life in the big city to live slowly. She walks to the fruit market every morning, tans topless on the beach, and writes letters to her lover who is a sailor. It’s definitely very romanticised, but I think that’s the point. We ended up shooting the campaign in Nice while I was on a girls’ Euro trip, which made the whole collection feel even more personal and honest to the world I had imagined.”

Finally, how do you hope Love by Venus will evolve? What goals do you have for yourself and the brand in the near future, is there anything we can expect to see soon?

“I really hope the brand continues to grow as a community. I want to produce collections more consistently, with a wider range of pieces, while still holding onto the care and intention behind each one. I’d love for people to experience Love by Venus more physically, through pop-ups, or in select stores, as I think that there’s a tactility behind the garments that can’t be expressed through photos online. I also hope the brand becomes more conscious and reflective of what’s happening in the world, responding in ways that are thoughtful and sustainable. I want to emphasise that I still have so much to learn. Love by Venus is growing alongside me, and I hope that as I evolve, I can continue bringing more of myself into the brand.”

My conversation with Jingyi allows you to feel her reflections and philosophy even deeper. We invite you to listen to our full conversation below.

One topic I loved hearing about from Jingyi most was using playfulness as the foundation of authenticity. Because she started her brand at a young age, creating authentic designs and visual identity came naturally to her. Incorporating playfulness and taking inspiration from mediums that inspired her at the time helped her to create an honest brand that was entirely her. She wasn’t taking it too seriously, wasn’t focused on maximizing market share or keeping up with other brands, and wasn’t designing for mass approval. I think this is what truly makes Love by Venus so charming because it is a passion project that reflects her 14-year-old whimsy and desire at heart.

Another important topic of our conversation was discussing how growth isn’t linear as a young creative or entrepreneur. I asked Jingyi to share some advice to young founders who base their worth on the metrics of their brand, as she opened up about struggling with dips in engagement when she exerted attention into other areas of her life. She recognized how volatile online engagement is, and as a result stressed how important it is to stay true to your vision and to invest in learning more about your work and practice to build something sustainable beyond pleasing the algorithm. As someone whose creative work is also deeply tied to success online, I find her advice so grounding and necessary. It’s a testament to staying true to your craft. Detaching yourself from creating something sustainable and well-rounded for a culture obsessed with immediacy is crucial.

And yet, what perhaps feels most significant is not simply the sustainability of her craft, but the community it has cultivated. I asked Jingyi what moment at her first pop-up in her hometown, Melbourne, stuck with her. She recalled how special it was to connect with her community face-to-face, to hear about how her brand has inspired them, and to see them feel and experience her pieces in real time. In fusing her pop-up with a poetry night, she was also able to bond with them creatively and hear more about her audience’s creative practices. We agreed on how fulfilling it must feel to see something that has primarily lived in your head become tangible, and loved, in the hands of others.

In moments like that, Love by Venus becomes more than an online clothing brand as it extends into a shared language. A mutual understanding that Jingyi’s vision and art embody a long-standing relationship with creativity, femininity, and nostalgia. And what began as an instinct to create from a teenager’s lens has now been shaped into a wondrous, romantic world of its own. As a long-time admirer of Love by Venus, I am so grateful I had this opportunity to chat with her and learn about her creative process. It only deepened my appreciation for her brand and her vision that sustains it.

Step into Love by Venus’s world here to discover her pieces.