Building: Food Lab & Apperal

A little café located in a cool, gentrified street aims to change our feeding experience 

If chefs such as Alain Ducasse, David Bouley, Anthony Bourdain launch a new cafe/restaurant/bistro we would expect new tastes we probably never-ever tasted before.

But in a case the entrepreneurs happen to be a bunch of folks who decide opening up a new cool café with background in different fields such as event-marketing and interior design what we should expect to live about that never-ever-happened experience is in appereance.

Building Food Lab and Apparel is a little, chic boutique which is located in a gentrified street, named Serdar-ı Ekrem, one of the recently coolest spots in the city. It's simply a sleek café with a clothing boutique and a little terrace for smokers.

But what is actually cool is in the details. 

One of the partners, Serkan Yılmaz explained to me that the main aim with the concept is to change feeding habits by presenting foods with some architectural objects, instead of changing the content of foods. Which means the 'tools' you're supposed to use for eating are inspired by construction tools, like saw or trowel.

And you can see this approach everywhere in the store: Clients gather around a 17-metres rectangle table with a shape of ladder and all kinds of foods are presented at the ceramic tiles. there are also some toy trucks here and there...

The apperal part of the store has exclusively chosen garments and accessorieses from different young creative brands of different countries. These are products let you identify with the concept of Building while differentiating yourself.

Interview: Behind the brand, Closh

Over the previous entry below, i talked with  the designers of Closh, Selvin Parunakyan and Serli Keçoğlu, about the current situation of their two-year-old brand. 

 

• You had started your business right before the global economic crisis. Even well-established brands have been severely affected by this turmoil all around the world. And it's known that small businesses have been comparatively more vulnarable, in general. Was that period harmful for you?

We are influenced directly by not the economic crisis itself but its perception in people’s mind.

Because the word, crisis, was so talked about and widespread that at some point, people became hesitant to shop and even they didn't want to go out for a short period of time. 
And then it eased up. Fortunately it was not so destructive for us.

• Do you take the latest trends into consider while you are designing? Or do you just go your own way?

Our clothes are mainly inspired by vintage designs. We modernize them as keeping the essence of the original design. Bows, falbalas, corsages, laces and pearls are the main characteristics on our cloths.  

• What’s prior while you are designing: Reflecting the original essence of the design or the expectations of your customers?

Of course, what the customers need for a good living is our first concern. But when we recreate an old-fashioned design, we try to keep its form the same as once it was! For that, we use iron corsets to keep the body tight and in shape and tutus to make the skirts and dresses swollen... 

• What’s the ratio of ready-to-wear to Haute couture in sales?

 It depends. But we can say that ready-to-wear and haute couture sales are almost fifty-fifty. 

• Now, you have partnerships with some of the popular tv series. How did it start?

 The stylists of these series discovered Closh. They said that the style of our cloths suits the characters in the serials they work with. And so our partnerships have improved. We help them choose what’s best for their need!

• How these partnerships have affected your brand? 

Because we live in a culture popularity is appreciated, we are certainly glad about this new brand awareness and perception Boutique Closh has now!

People would like to look like as chic as the personas they watch on the screen; so they, as a general tendency, try to imitate these tv figures and we help them live the life they wish for.

• What will be your next step for Closh? 

 We'd like to launch Closh abroad. But the details are not clear yet.

!! GO BELOW FOR FURTHER READING !! 

Detailed shots in Boutique Closh

Atiye Sok. No:2 Nişantaşı/İSTANBUL

Closh dresses up!

The Partnership, chic women's wear boutique Closh has made with the TV serial, Aşk-ı Memnu has put the brand into a new level, by introducing it to a new and lager audience

    Closh was opened two years ago, in Nişantaşı, by a couple of talented newly-grad fashion designers, Selvin & Serli, with Nerime Ercan and Natali Ohannesyan's great supports.

    I remember the opening night of Closh. It was so fun. Everybody was so excited; the clothes were great, store looked chic and hopes were fresh, high... Everyone expected the best, so did i.

     Whenever and wherever i see a small, independent business blossoms regardless considering of which side of business it belongs to i certainly get excited. 

Because these little stores are like oasises in a market now ruled mainly by chain stores. They are like celebration of individualistic creativity. 

    Nevertheless i had doubts regarding the future of Closh. 

    Okay the location was cool, the designers were really enthusiastic and their designs were made with inspiration. Yet these are not the only components which make a business work properly.

    For that reason what i wondered then was that if they could achieve to survive in this highly competive environment while dealing with fothcoming economic crisis.     

    So whenever i run into Selvin on the street i asked, hoping for the best, that how the store does and she always responded modestly saying "it's oka".

       This month, Closh celebrates its second year!

After the worst time of economic crisis has passed away, the recent news delightfully reveals that Closh has started to make more than oka! 

        The current partnership Closh has made with TV series Aşk-ı Memnu which has quite well ratings both in Turkey and in some Arab countries has been introduced the brand to a larger community and increased its brand awareness.

        In a very short turkish broadcasting history very few TV serial has had such an effect over people with its styling! 

       Thanks to mass media coverage, the style the serial represents has enthusiastic followers, so do the brands behind of that style!  

Prada's first store in İstanbul!

Underconstruction:

the first Prada store will open its doors in Nişantaşı, on December 10!

Prada has long been represented in İstanbul by the luxury department store Beymen, which is known with its loyal customers that place İstanbul among the ten best selling markets of Prada! 

With the opening of its new store, of course the total sales of the brand is expected to increase but what about Beymen's?

This new Prada store is just across the Beymen's flagship store. That's why everybody wonders how will the opening affect the sales in Beymen.

One of the representatives from Beymen clarified that they will no longer sell Prada in their flagship store yet the other stores have no worries about the opening, since the customers come to Beymen because of its private selection of products exclusively made for them 

the second store of Prada in İstanbul has been planned to be opened at İstinye Park Shopping Mall

An Imaginary Brand: HAREM

I imagine a brand which associates with the old hedonistic lifestyle, once arguably lived behind the doors of Ottoman Harem!

Harem pants are among the hottest trends of 2010! It’s sure that we will see more and more orientalist designs for a good few years ahead because of the arab effect!

But It’s not only the design, i think what’s really exciting about Harem, as a concept, refering to the old times, is the feeling of intimacy.

I imagine an İstanbul based, prestigious, ready-to-wear brand, named HAREM which reflects the mystery and prestige of the daily life of Harem, once in Topkapi Palace!

Harem: a sacred place, dedicated only to women

In those old times, the woman of Harem, named ‘cariye’, was chosen and raised to be a member of this obscure club. Once they were accepted into the court, they stepped into a very protected, glamorous and previliged life.
It was so protected that the only man who can enter the doors of Harem was the sultan himself.
Cariyes were served the best of all, in return for serving their best to his majesty. The competition among the cariyes were harsh in order to become Sultan's favorite and give him a son.
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Because there is very little known about this confidential life of Harem, it has provoked a orgy-like lifestyle imagination in westerners' mind for centuries.

The brand i imagine is mainly built around this hedonistic perception.

‘The whetted desires’ are gonna be at the core of the brand concept!

It's all about the feeling of luxury, the old mysterious hedonism, and gaining power in a very closed society to be the sultan's favorite!

you may think the last statement is kind of chauvinist, but actually very little has changed since then and today women still have strong desire for gaining power to acquire what they want!

When you think about Ottoman lifestyle you would probably remember old-fashion costumes such as kaftans or harem pants.

Forget them.

For the brand, Harem, not the kind of garments which were used at the court is important. What are emphasized, along with the feeling, are the patterns. These old-time Ottoman patterns can be modernized and used as the reference point!

Also i would like the brand has an instore hammam and host a special 'hot night out!' (details of which left to your imagination!)