The Republic: Banana Republic from the Inside Out

While between shots on our July photo shoot, we cornered model Noah Mills to find out his essentials for summer. Check out the Q&A below.

Banana Republic: When you think of summer, the first thing that comes to mind is?
Noah: A fresh water river.

BR: What are your three must haves for summer?
Noah: White tennis shoes. A good retro bathing suit. Good shades.

BR: What keeps you cool in the summer?
Noah: Hopefully, a warm east coast summer breeze.

BR: Our July campaign is all about Desk to Dinner, what’s your favorite spot for dinner?
Noah: Cafe Jolina in Venice Beach.

BR: Your personal style: dressed up or dressed down?
Noah: Dressed down.

BR: Knife, spoon or fork?
Noah: Spork.

We booked some time with model Caroline Ribeiro during our July photo shoot to find out her favorite must haves for summer. Check out the Q&A below. 

Banana Republic: When you think of summer, the first thing that comes to mind is?

Caroline: Color.

BR: What are your three must haves for summer?
Caroline: A bikini. A pretty dress. Sandals.

BR: What keeps you cool in the summer?
Caroline: The weather. It gives me good energy.

BR: Our July campaign is all about Desk to Dinner, what’s your favorite spot for dinner?
Caroline: DO Hwa in New York

BR: Your personal style: dressed up or dressed down?
Caroline: Dressed down.

BR: Knife, spoon or fork?
Caroline: Knife.

We’re beyond smitten with Coco Rocha. She’s one of our favorite models and the star of our Summer 2012 and Banana Republic Trina Turk Collection campaigns. When she recently gave us a shout out on her popular tumblr, we thought it the perfect time to catch up.

Banana Republic: Are you still shocked/excited when you see yourself on a billboard?
Coco: It’s still a really unique and bizarre feeling to see myself—or even any of my friends—on a billboard. When a campaign first comes out, I’ll usually do the obligatory “picture in front of the picture” tweet and that gets really awkward when people on the street realize I’m posing in front of my own campaign. That happened the other week in San Francisco with the Trina Turk for Banana Republic ads. I ended up having to pose for some passersby, as well!

BR: You were amazing in our Summer 2012 campaign. What are your top 5 summer essentials?
Coco: 1. A good book for a lazy day by the pool. Right now I’m reading “North And South” by Elizabeth Gaskel. I’ve watched the movie every year of my life but never read the book before.
2. Sunscreen, especially for pasty white girls like me! If I even look at the sun, I break out in freckles.
3. A barbecue! I actually just bought my first for my new house and grilled up a bunch of amazing veggies and steak last week. A BBQ meal always lets you (and your jealous neighbors) know it’s summer.
4. A colored lip! Summer is THE time for some color in your life. Bubblegum pink and candy orange are my current favorites.
5. Margaritas! My new favorite drink. When done right there is nothing better on a hot summer day.

BR: Describe your style in 3 words?
Coco: Romantic. Quirky. Bold.

Keep up with Coco by following her on tumblr.

Photo via Coco Rocha

Men’s Health magazine recently caught up with our creative director Simon Kneen to pick his brain about everything from where he gets his design inspiration to what’s on his playlist and his biggest styling pet peeves for men. Check out the Q&A for all this—plus a lot more fun Simon facts.

And we can’t blame them … Tara McCollum, our Director of Public Relations, is one talented, multi-tasking chic lady. WhoWhatWear and our friends at the COVETEUR caught up with Tara in her colorful, seriously stylish (and, yes, covetable) NYC work digs for the most recent installment of the fab Fashion Office feature.

We asked Tara what it was like being on the other side of the camera. “I’m just in awe of the talents behind WhoWhatWear and the COVETEUR. They’re incredibly grounded and funny with a killer sense of style. I’m so honored they approached me for this series.”

Read the full Q&A here.