Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

Fashion republic

Long a seedbed for supermodels, Prague is now emerging as a major rendezvous for style gurus, as Gay Fuller reports

Once better known for its models than its celebrity designers, the Czech Republic’s style scene has been revolutionised by Prague Fashion Week (www.praguefashionweek.com), a biannual event showcasing the work of the country’s best couturiers.

With designers such as Helena Fejkova, Klára Nademlýnská and Martina Nevarilová opening boutiques around Prague’s Wenceslas Square (Václavské Námestí) and along the cobbled streets of the old town, the city’s fashion houses are finally starting to attract an international clique of fashionistas.

“People come to Prague from all over the world to buy clothes because our designers are very creative,” says Jitka Šimková, founder of Prague Walks (www.praguewalks.com), a company that takes groups around the city’s buzzing fashion district. “Many designers have boutiques with in-house ateliers and are happy to arrange for private fittings and showings.”

Just up from Wenceslas Square, the luxurious art-nouveau Palác Lucerna (61 Štepánská, www.lucerna.cz), the home of Bohemia’s first modern cinema where the first Czech talkie was screened in 1931, is now home to a warren of chic boutiques.

On the first floor, Galerie Módy has all the latest creations from Prague’s top fashion houses. “Whether it’s a Jaroslava Procheslova tartan plaid ruffled mini-skirt with lace tulle, or the slinky silver gown especially made for the Czech movie Mazaný Filip [Smart Philip], this is the place to find what the city does best,” says store assistant Jan Pešek.

Designer Helen Fejkova (www.helenafejkova.cz), who opened the landmark store more than a decade ago, says: “In the beginning, people from abroad came to Prague with great curiosity – as if they expected us to have just climbed out of the trees. They were amazed that we had so much to offer in terms of fashion and art. Now, we have a large foreign clientele.”

A couple of streets away from Palác Lucerna and a few steps from Kafka’s memorial, HQ at HH (10 Dušní) showcases the simple yet refined garments of Hana Havelková (www.havelkova.com), who gained international recognition after Czech beauty queen Tatiana Kucharová won the 2006 Miss World competition wearing one of her dazzling little white dresses.

On the same street, the atelier of Tatiana Kováríková (1 Dušní, www.tatiana.cz) is a well-known rendezvous for savvy fashionistas seeking delicate feminine garments designed to flatter the figure. Kováríková, whose designs have been featured in Elle and Vogue, has filled her boutique with flowing cocktail dresses, loose tops, and skirts and suits in dark colours accentuated by bright beads and embroidery.

Cut across the old town to Týn and you’ll find Ivana Follová’s If Art & Fashion Gallery (1 Týn, iwww.vanafollova.cz). Working with chiffon, satin and other silky materials, Follová produces a striking range of evening gowns, knits and suits in eye-catching colours. Her cutting-edge venue, which also hosts exhibitions of ceramics and local artists’ paintings, is a magnet for Czech businesswomen and celebrities.

Clients include the former president Václav Havel, who is a fan of the stylist’s elegant, easy-to-wear designs.

“The quality of Follová’s clothing is faultless and yet an evening gown only costs about €600, which is a lot less than you would pay for similar quality and style in a Paris fashion house,” says Šimková. “In Prague, you can buy designer creations at a fraction of what you’d pay elsewhere.”

Another not-to-be-missed store is Timoure et Group (6 V Kolkovné, www.timoure.com). Created in the early 1990s by Alexandra Pavalová and Ivana Šafránková – both graduates of the city’s prestigious Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design (www.vsup.cz) – the trend-setting store is filled to the brink with silk skirts, suede jackets and crisp suits, reflecting the pair’s clean-cut, timeless style.

“Our fashion houses were world famous for chic and style during the inter-war years,” explains Šimková. “During the communist era, you couldn’t have an atelier of your own – you could only be a seamstress.

So after the wall came down, all that creativity that had been pent up for so long came bursting out. If you browse Prague’s fashion boutiques and design studios now, you’ll find there’s an incredible range of styles on offer.”

That variety, which puts the spice of life into Czech style, can be found in classical mode on streets such as Elišky Krásnohorské. Here Martina Nevarilová’s atelier (4/11 Elišky Krásnohorské, www.navarila.cz) is stacked to the rafters with classy knitwear, stylish sweaters and skirts made from easy care materials such as merino and polyester. The same is true at nearby Boheme (8 Dušní, www.boheme.cz). Hana Stocklassa, who studied in Sweden before opening her iconic store selling a very wearable range of knitwear, sweaters, leather and suede-wear,

says: “I want people to feel comfortable in our clothes wherever they are – in the street, at the office or at a party.”

As well as the smart shops, Prague’s backstreets are littered with indie boutiques showcasing the work of the city’s rising style stars. Pick of the bunch is Parazit (25 Karlova, www.parazit.cz), whose motto is “provocative, vivid and never dull”. The store offers intriguing and affordable one-offs and limited editions by young designers such as Talavaskova Mirka, Mariehlad and Markova. Meanwhile, the racks at Backstage (12 Masarykovo Nábrezi, www.backstage.cz) are packed with affordable designer seconds.

So if you’re seeking fashion at cut-rate prices, visit Prague now before the big names on the city’s style scene become as celebrated as Czech fashion models Eva Herzigová and Daniela Peštová.

Top tips

Make the most of Czech style

Find fashion on a budget
Buy old collections at wholesale prices at Timoure et Group’s fashion outlet (25 Americká). Private showings are available for groups of four or less.

Keep an eye out for sales
August and January are the prime times for stocking up on designer wear at a snip of the usual prices.

Don’t miss these stores
Klára Nademlýnská (3 Dlouhá, www.klaranademlynska.cz) sells tailored suits and elegant designs with sexy flourishes. Max Fred (5 Týnská Ulicka) sells feminine garments and stylish menswear by designer Iška Fišárková.

Did you know?
Czech law obliges retailers to offer a two-year guarantee on all goods.

FR Style tchèque

Prague est en train de s’imposer comme nouvelle capitale de la mode, une nouvelle mecque pour les gourous des tendances. Un reportage d’Gay Fuller

Durant la Semaine de la Mode à Prague, un événement semestriel, la scène fashion de la République tchèque a tenté de sortir de ses frontières et de se faire une place au rang des villes mondiales de la mode. Pour l’occasion, elle s’est efforcée d’attirer l’attention du monde entier sur la mode tchèque. “On vient ici de partout parce que nos stylistes débordent de créativité,” confie Jitka Šimková, fondatrice de Prague Walks, une association qui emmène des groupes de visiteurs à la découverte de l’effervescence du quartier de la mode.

Près de la Place Wenceslas, Palác Lucerna abrite une kyrielle de boutiques chics, dont la Galerie Módy. Helena Fejková, qui a ouvert ce magasin, il y a plus de dix ans, explique “qu’au début, les étrangers venaient ici emplis d’une grande curiosité – comme s’ils s’attendaient à ce que nous soyons à peine descendus de nos arbres ! Mais en définitive, ils étaient ébahis car nous avions tellement à offrir.”

Quelques rues plus loin, le quartier général du label HH expose les vêtements simples et toutefois raffinés d’Hana Havelková, devenue un grand nom dans le monde du stylisme après le couronnement de Tatiana Kucharová au titre de Miss World 2006 en portant une de ses robes. Traversez la vieille ville en direction de Tyn et vous tomberez sur la galerie d’Art et de Mode d’Ivana Follová. L’endroit est un must pour les personnalités du monde des affaires et les célébrités tchèques, dont l’ex-président Václav Havel. Timoure et Group est une autre boutique incontournable, ouverte au début des années 1990 par Alexandra Pavalová et Ivana Šafránková, diplômées de l’Académie des Arts, d’Architecture et de Design de la ville.

À côté de ces magasins qui ont pignon sur rue, on ne résiste pas aux arrière-boutiques disséminées au cœur de Prague qui montrent les réalisations des stars de demain. Parazit est le top du top, sa devise : “intensément provocateur et jamais ennuyeux”. On y trouve des vêtements de jeunes designers comme Talavaskova Mirka, Mariehlad et Markova.

NL Tsjechië + Mode = Heerlijk

Gay Fuller ontdekt Praag als nieuwe hotspot voor stijlgoeroes

Tsjechië’s modescene heeft nieuwe impulsen gekregen dankzij de tweejaarlijkse Fashion Week in Praag en de modehuizen van de hoofdstad krijgen steeds meer internationale aandacht. “Er komen mensen langs van over de hele wereld omdat onze ontwerpers enorm creatief zijn”, zegt Jitka Šimková, de oprichtster van Prague Walks, dat groepen bezoekers rondleidt in de bruisende modedistricten van de stad.

Vlak bij Wenceslas Square ligt Palác Lucerna, waar de ene chique boetiek naast de andere ligt, waaronder ook Galerie Módy. Helena Fejková, die hier meer dan tien jaar geleden een winkel opende, zegt: “In het begin kwamen toeristen hier enkel uit nieuwsgierigheid – net of ze dachten dat we net uit de bomen geklommen waren. Ze stonden ervan versteld dat we zoveel te bieden hebben”.

Enkele straten verderop prijzen HQ en HH de eenvoudige maar geraffineerde ontwerpen van Hana Havelková aan, die internationale erkenning kreeg nadat Tatiana Kucharová de Miss World-verkiezing van 2006 won in een van haar jurken. Doorkruis de oude stad Tyn om tot bij Ivana Follová’s Art & Fashion Gallery te komen. Deze winkel werkt als een magneet op Tsjechische zakenmensen en beroemdheden. Ex-president Václav Havel is er een van de graag geziene klanten.

Een andere niet te missen winkel is Timoure et Group, die in het begin van de jaren ’90 werd geopend door Alexandra Pavalová en Ivana Šafránková, twee producten van de Praagse Academie voor Kunst, Architectuur en Design.

Naast mooie winkels vind je in de achterstraatjes van Praag ook tal van indieboetieks met werken van de rijzende sterren van de stad. De absolute aanrader is Parazit, dat het motto ‘uitdagend levendig en nooit saai’ hanteert en kledij verkoopt van de hand van jonge designers als Talavaskova Mirka, Mariehlad en Markova.

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