Photos: Ekaterina Shipova Bell.
Globally-recognised handbag designer Katya Komarova has opened the doors to a beautiful retail space in Stirling, a luxurious addition to the local fashion scene.
The store opened with a soft launch today for people to pop in and browse the timeless and ethically-conscious handbags from her label, ‘Katya Komarova.’
Katya said her brand started with an online store and a studio in the city, and after hosting successful pop-up stores for 18 months, it was time to move into a retail space.
“It is always the picture I was dreaming about for my brand and it was always a challenge to deliver that experience online, you can still choose the elements but it is different to a customer having the experience hands on in store, so I am very excited,” she says.
“We have clients across the globe but Adelaide is still our home, so it will be nice to have this face-to-face experience.”
The space has been transformed with lots of natural touches including the colours and furniture, polished concrete floors, and the ceiling is covered with bamboo.
The light and bright space is very modern and minimalist, with mostly white, but splashes of orange adding a pop of colour, reminiscent of tanned leather.
Katya wanted the store interior to tell the story of the brand, which she launched eight years ago and has since become a symbol of elegance, functionality, and sustainability in the fashion industry.
“The brand looked really different back then, it took me a while to work out who I am as a designer, how we can differentiate ourselves with the offering, and we slowly but surely built this concept of stitch-free bags. All the bags are made with press studs, you can fold them and unfold them for easy travelling and they allow customers to swap straps and handles,” she says.
The brand’s playful approach allows customers a hands-on experience and there are two ranges of bag materials: Italian leather and wool felt. Katya says they use local traders as much as possible and the brand prides itself on its commitment to sustainability.
“All of the materials that we work with are quite sustainable and the processes we have in place for production minimise waste and simplify the production process,” she says.
Katya has worked in the fashion industry for many years and learned how to work with leather from a local art designer in Thailand. She began making bags 12 years ago and studied bag making in Florence, before moving back to Australia and starting her brand. She has since taken the world by storm.
“We usually have a few styles at the same time and they always come in a range of different colours. The actual range is quite minimal, we offer them in different with different styles and handles. Every time we plan our range, we make sure we have variation on a classic shape for each of the styles that are currently on trend,” she says.
“For September we are preparing crystal bags so all bags will be covered in crystals for a bit of fun. We are very minimalist in our design, but sometimes we like to add a bit of fun to our range.”
View the full range of Katya Komarova handbags here.
WHAT: Katya Komarova store.
WHERE: 2b Mount Barker Road, Stirling SA, 5152.
WHEN: Wednesday to Sunday, 10am until 5pm.
