When did you know that you wanted to be a designer and how did you initially get your start?
I always knew that fashion design was going to be my life. I had my first collection at the age of nine. It was a jeans collection for kids. I tried to offer the collection to my father’s business partner, who was producing very boring clothes at the time. But, they didn’t take me seriously and thought I was just a nine year old kid. It was then that I realized I was going to do this on my own.
Croatia is a country with a rich history in the arts. What were some motivating factors in your life that influenced your decisions to creating the designs you now have?
I personally like all the things that have some deeper message. A background that could talk about higher values. So the most important thing to me, is to create items which are more than a beautiful dress or statement coat. My clothes convey their own story and people should feel it when they wear it. Being different is the one and only motivation that I have in my work and having a beautiful homeland like Croatia provides never ending inspiration too.
One thing of note with your brand is that you are environmentally responsible by using organic and recycled materials for your garments. Why was this decision important to you?
Krie Design’s core belief is that fashion can be at the same time ethical and affordable and that is something we always promote. As materials play the key role in our brand sustainability, we buy left over fabric that would otherwise go to waste. This principle of production requires more innovations, higher creativity and working more hours for dressmaking, but we are proud of it .
You have such an eclectic array of options in your collections. What kind of woman would want to wear Krie Design?
Krie Design clothes is made for individuals with styling preferences, something people all around the world want to gain. There are no age limits – equally desirable by teenagers, business women and ladies that age with style. The only thing that our consumer has in common is a strong personality. We don’t want to promote a specific ideal for only one type of woman or age, but rather show a variety of styles.
The brand itself is manufactured in Croatia, which provides stability for the employees that work for you. What are some the challenges you face as an entrepreneur in the business of fashion?
When I started designing, the challenge was to be creative, different and unique. Another factor that can make the business challenging is having to be the creative person and making decisions that are often not so creative. As a designer, you are dealing with a lot of work behind your work and creativity. The hardest thing for me is to make some compromises between what the market is looking for and the art of designing clothes. But the art in me is always pushing forward as you can see in my statement pieces.
Based on your experience thus far, what advice would you give to other fashion designers getting into the industry?
I think that sustainability in fashion is the future. We already can see that human awareness is changing and that the fashion industry that is such a big polluter, must in time be limited to further environmental degradation. In history we could witness what happened to the tobacco industry and what kind of restriction it has today. So, along with a good business plan and product, sustainability in fashion is a long-term smart business.
Besides wearing your own brand, what other designers and styles appeals to your personality the most?
For me, fashion is a universal language. When something is “in fashion” there are no barriers, whether ethical, ethnic background, or geographical…none. That is how fashion connects people. So when I see some “art piece” from unknown or very well known fashion designers, I fall in love immediately. For years, I had a crush with Alber Elbaz’s work.
Thank you for sharing with us a little bit of life behind Krie Design. What new projects do you have coming up in the near future?
Our goal is to create fashion with a message. We want to be the fashion messengers of the new age that comes for humanity. We want to make clothes that have a sustainable background story and high-end fashion garments, all at once.
Twitter: @KrieDesign
Instagram: @KrieDesign
Facebook: Krie Design
Website: KrieDesign.hr