Sebastián Pons (Mallorca, 1972) has not presented a collection for a long time, but he has never completely abandoned fashion. "He is my protective shield against life," he wields. An existence –professional and personal– marked by his time at Alexander McQueen, the firm that revolutionized and changed 21st century fashion forever. He was the right-hand man and friend of the ill-fated designer –he gives a good account of it in the recently released documentary McQueen–, although his name may have gone unnoticed by the general public. After closing his namesake brand in the midst of the crisis "with a pufo that he couldn't afford", Pons returns with Muchache, a line of tunics that do not understand gender or sizes. During this time out of the circuit, in which his father and brother died, he changed the bosses for the family farm to be closer to his own. Now, "the planets have aligned" to launch this small firm that does not yet have an online store and in which everything is done by him. Even the campaign photos.

We take advantage of his return to vindicate the figure of this Spaniard who one day arrived in Paris to pursue, always at the side of his long-awaited colleague, the dream of directing a great haute couture house such as Givenchy. Muchache, McQueen (Lee and Alexander), Zara, Vetements and Kate Middleton follow one another and intermingle in our conversation. A spoiler: although in the past he has been critical of the second stage that the firm Alexander McQueen is going through, now led by Sarah Burton, the Mallorcan now recognizes the good work of the British and even the figure of the Duchess of Cambridge as royal ambassador (figuratively and literally) of the house.

Muchache's garments have no gender. Will the labels 'feminine' and 'masculine' disappear altogether?

It's hard to predict, but what I do know is that you have to give everything a twist. Fashion has to be more democratic, so that it is not only for people with money and with a certain gender or size.

Muchache ends in –e. Is it a claim for the neutral gender in Spanish as proposed by the LGTB+ collective?

I got the idea from there, but I don't claim anything. I loved the word 'boy/a' and to make it generic I put the -e because it suited the concept of the line and because it is a hot debate in society.

You were Alexander McQueen's right-hand man. Has your role in the firm been recognized enough?

Whoever had to admit it to me [he says in reference to McQueen himself] recognized it and did it while he was alive. I'm not interested in any more recognition than what he gave me. He was a magnificent person with me, he always praised my work. We had our ups and downs, like everyone else, but on balance it was a very positive relationship. When I debuted with my own brand, he was by my side and supported me financially and also on a psychological level.

Did you have a hard time deciding to talk about him in the recently released documentary McQueen?

A lot. He didn't want to fall into the clutches of people who wanted to do something that wasn't in keeping with who he was. I had long conversations with the directors and didn't open up to them until I got to know them well. At first I looked more capable and once I was already involved in garlic I was very excited. The penalty returns and also the nostalgia when remembering the good times.

Does the result reflect well what the designer was like?

When I first saw it I was very excited. The result is good and I think it reflects well the two figures: the person (Lee) and Alexander McQueen (the character). There is all that dramatic part that narrates the death of Isabella Blow and McQueen's mother, who I wish they had not had to be there, because everything else is so beautiful and so inspiring... But it is a reflection of life itself and of what occurred.

Do you stay with the person or the character?

I'll take both. I knew him as a creator, but my favorite was Lee: a normal person with a lot of talent and a very powerful and contagious laugh. He was always making jokes. The character was another story.

You were his right hand. Was it unfair not to stay in charge of the firm after his disappearance?

Not at all. The one who was giving the callous and working as an assistant was Sarah (Burton, current creative director) and it was she who had to take control. If they had proposed it to me, I don't know if I would have accepted. His figure was very important to me and I don't know if he would have seen me qualified. Sarah is proving collection by collection that she was the right person. I don't have much of a relationship with her, but we call each other occasionally. The last time the team of that time met was in 2015, on the fifth anniversary of McQueen's death. We had a very nice evening in which Anabelle Neilson (McQueen's muse who passed away a few days ago) was also there. I remember we played playing music and guessing which parade was the song that was playing.

In the documentary, McQueen says he would like the brand to kill him. Do you share his opinion?

No. I think that deep down he did want the firm to continue and he left the ends tied for it to be so. He wanted to create an empire equal to that of Yves Saint Laurent and he succeeded. We never talk about this but I would put my hand in the fire because he would be happy to know that the brand continues, that they are doing beautiful things and that the numbers are with them.

The brand is going through a very different stage than the one he lived with, less spectacular.

Yeah, but the essence is still there, although now I see a big influence from Sarah, of course. McQueen's parades were spectacular because they came from his soul. Alexander McQueen there was only one and it would be foolish to try to do what he did. Imagine the pressure on poor Sarah, what that girl must be going through. Do you know the responsibility of replacing Alexander McQueen and being compared to him?

The Duchess of Cambridge has become the great ambassador of the house. Does it fit with the DNA of the firm?

I love that he's wearing McQueen outfits. They are not those of the collection but pieces adapted or created for it. It must be a source of pride for the team that a brand that started from scratch is dressing royalty.

Would McQueen have liked it too?

Yes. She was a great lover of her country, of his culture and I would tell you that even of royalty. If you look at the collection The Girl Who Lives in the Tree, she brought out a strapless dress with an Elizabeth II print. I don't know if he was a royalist, but he certainly wasn't disgusted with the monarchy and accepted the appointment of Commander of the Order of the British Empire. He was very proud that his country recognized him. I wish we had that in Spain.

What is the biggest lack of Spanish fashion?

Spanish fashion is known worldwide for fast fashion. Being leaders in this field, I think, does not allow us to be leaders in designer fashion, and there is a lot of talent here. What happens is that if designers sell their jackets for 300 euros, the Spanish think why they are going to pay so much if they can go to Zara and get one for 80. Of course, I have to say that I am a great lover of the formula of Inditex itself and sometimes I buy at Zara, but there are things that I don't respect. Now I'm trying to get Amancio Ortega's number to make him a proposal.

I don't have it, but if you want to let us know...

It is a revolutionary proposal. I can't tell you what it is but I think that Spanish fast fashion should support national design more.

Lorenzo Caprile confessed to S Moda that he admires Amancio Ortega. You too?

Business-wise, yes. In terms of ethics, I would tell you that I cannot admire him. But in the business sense, I kneel before him because his formula is revolutionary and engaging. Of course, Zara has been made by the Spanish who are the ones who bought it in the beginning. I wish now they were creating genuine things with the super creative people we have in this country. Or grant scholarships and grants for young designers who are struggling to avoid having to close.

As used to the theatricality and drama of McQueen's designs and your own brand, what do you think of the success of brands like Vetements and the craze for luxury street wear?

Honestly, I don't understand that business of selling sweatshirts for a thousand euros and sneakers for 300. Call me old fashioned but I highly value the design, the cut, the fabric... These brands only work on the logo and you pay the hell out of it. It is a formula that works with millennials and all my students [he is the director of creative projects at IED in Barcelona] are superfans, but I don't know what they see in it. And what they are doing with Balenciaga is already off and let's go. Cristóbal Balenciaga closed because he did not want to fall into all this and now they are doing it. The brand has evolved into a Buffalo platforms.

Would you agree to direct Balenciaga?

I guess so. But it's very difficult to create under another name, I don't know if I'm ready.