Paris has become a welcoming hub for Ukrainian brands. Seven of them who are part of the Ukraine-based showroom of Ukrainian designers traveled to the French capital to showcase their brands, develop new connections and meet buyers during Paris Fashion Week. They included My Sleeping Gypsy, Frolov, Olena Dats', Chereshnivska, Kacharovska, Katerina Kvit, and Paskal. Some traveled for more than 40 hours across European borders.

Several of the designers said there is still a sense of distance from being in a country where normalcy is not hard-won. “It's a big contrast every time I come [to Paris]”said Alina Kachorovska, CEO and co-owner of Ukrainian fashion holding company Kacho Group, and 8-year-old designer of luxury accessories brand Kachorovska. “We also have a lot of our items developed in Italy, and every time I cross the border, I want to go home. [to Ukraine] immediately. This border divides an abnormal life and a normal life. And when I get to this normal life, I feel like I'm playing pretend.”

She added, “Every year, I do a business presentation in December. The only focus I had for the company this year was helping workers lead happy lives and supporting them during this time.” The brand has 100 specialist male workers at its factory and Kachorovska is still concerned that they will deploy in the coming months.

Production is stabilization. in Ukraine

Production has become relatively stable for Ukrainian brands, despite some difficulties. “We are in a normal situation, not good, but normal,” said designer Katerina Kvit, whose eponymous leather outerwear has a loyal customer base in Ukraine and abroad. The brand sells online through partnerships with Farfetch; kyiv-based Tsum, Ukraine's largest luxury goods retailer; and Nordiska Kompaniet, a department store in Stockholm. “Our production is based in kyiv, so we have had to deal with power outages.”

She added: “And there is always the problem of people. Getting good workers right now is difficult.” Many of the brand's leaders pointed out that staffing was an issue. Brands focused on luxury-level craftsmanship said they were having a particularly difficult time.

Many of these brand leaders said that looking for production outside Ukraine was out of the question, as they saw it. Svitlana Bevza, the 17-year-old founder of luxury fashion brand Bevza, moved her children to Portugal at the start of the war and began exploring production in the country. However, soon after, she returned to Ukraine. She preferred the quality of manufacturing in her own country and wanted to employ local workers, many of whom were out of work. “Within a couple of months, our shops were open again,” she said.

“Our spring 2023 collection was produced online through online communication with our offices in Ukraine. We went back to Ukraine to shoot the lookbook and then went to New York to exhibit it there,” Bevza said. “Since then, our workshop in kyiv has been the one that produces all our samples.” The brand's fall 2023 collection leaned heavily on local tailoring for its dramatic gowns. It also features pieces of jewelry in the shape of eggs as symbols of rebirth and ears of wheat to symbolize Ukraine. As the “barn” of Europe, Ukraine's blue and gold flag symbolizes its blue skies and wheat fields.

For recycling-focused brands, sourcing materials has become easier as time has passed. “Ukraine has a lot of companies that sell second-hand items like jeans, and we only source them,” said Iryna Kokhana, co-founder of the Chereshnivska brand. The brand also produces its own handwoven fabric from leftover materials, in collaboration with Ukrainian artist Tereza Barabash. She turns it into jackets, dresses and shirts that star in her collection.

By contrast, the brand's textile prints that started producing in kyiv just before the war now have a much longer lead time. “We have to think more about deadlines and shipping times, because everything takes longer and there are always delays,” Kokhana said.

Growth in international orders

With continued support from the international community, Ukrainian fashion brands are seeing a surge in international orders following a 2022 order freeze. For 7-year-old Chereshnivska, who specializes in classic shirts, revamped jeans and outerwear, coat, international orders now comprise more than 60% of all orders. Previously, 98% of the brand's sales were made in Ukraine. Going forward, the brand's goal is to reach more international buyers, especially in the US, where most of its sales are currently made online.

For his part, Kvit said his brand is now looking to sell in more concept stores in Europe and the US, after seeing successful sales through Farfetch and Nordiska Komapaniet. After the height of the pandemic, Katerina Kvit began to focus on limited collections, reducing production from 50 items to 20 per season.

“I had never considered [this channel] before, but my brand is suitable for small concept stores where there is an exclusive and high-end clientele,” he said. “We are in a department store in Vienna, but I am finding that concept stores are good business partners. For this level of product, you want to feel the quality and have a conversation with the store owners.”

Could high-end production move to Ukraine in the near future?

Many of the brands on the show floor expressed a new sense of togetherness and sharing of resources. “Before, when you went somewhere international and saw other Ukrainian brands, it was a competition,” Kvit said. “We knew each other, but we didn't speak to each other.” Today, it's all about sharing information to keep us all moving forward and sharing support. We have collective chat groups where we talk about buyers, designs, new ideas. Everyone is open.

Bevza added: “Now we talk about everything together and share deliveries and warehouses. […] I hope we will move forward and create a peaceful country. The quality of tailoring in Ukraine is very good and has real potential for the international fashion market.”

Kvit, who also runs a knitwear brand, is exploring the possibility of opening a factory in the Ukraine near kyiv in the next few years, an idea she had before the pandemic. It also provides B2B production for companies in Europe through Katerina Kvit's current factory in Ukraine.

“A lot of our production is now B2B, because brands in Europe are impressed with our quality,” he said. “Ukraine could become a production center like Turkey has been for high-end garments in the future. It is not cheap to produce high-end goods in Europe. It would be a good opportunity for the country in an area where there are many skilled workers.”