Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia isn’t just a runway full of duds from the USSR. Neither is it the logomania kitsch that flooded Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union in the early nineties. Instead, it’s a developing hub for small designers as well as off-the-beaten-path concept stores. And this season, it wasn’t the loud and bold that reigned at Fashion Week—up-close-and-personal presentations by labels like ZDDZ and J.Kim were favorite breakout stars, while stores like the charming INDEXflat and too-hip Kuznetsky Most 20 were havens for shopping. Here, see the best designers and shopping sites from the Eastern empire—it’s hardly your babushka’s wardrobe.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of ZDDZ

Already a burgeoning international success, VFiles graduate Dasha Selyanova of ZDDZ took her collection back to the motherland, this time with a touch of the tongue-in-cheek references that Muscovite cool kids love: JNCO-sized wide-leg trousers with metallic patchwork (influenced by Selyanova’s time as a member of a rap group in nineties Saint Petersburg), as well as oversize blazers and parochial-style skirts reminiscent of school uniforms.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of J.Kim

Born in Uzbekistan to Korean emigrants, Moscow-based Jenia Kim translates her heritage into her designs. Next Paris Fashion Week, expect to see several Muscovite It girls donning Kim’s coats dotted with delicate but contrasting embroideries of Korean characters and petals, as well as dresses with hand-sewn illustrations of traditional Korean dancers.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of Cap America

Though she began her career as an abstract artist, Olia Shurygina started her own label Cap America after she wanted to bring her creations from the easel to the people. There are plenty of asymmetrical slip dresses and staple coats in a Pop Art–friendly color wheel of primary colors.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of Yasya Minochkina

Ukrainian designer Yasya Minochkina has been busy—fresh from a show for Mercedes-Benz Kiev Fashion Days, Minochkina jetted off to present in Moscow. And the designer brought the whirlwind to her collection, too, with pattern-heavy trouser suits and eco-leather coats glazed in cotton candy hues.

 

Photo: Courtesy of Ria Keburia

Georgian designer Ria Keburia expanded on the future-meets–French revolution theme at her presentation, collaborating with Dimitri Shabalin for a bevy of Robocop-inspired masks bejeweled with pearls, children’s toys, and watch faces that we seriously want to borrow for our next masquerade ball.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of Liana Satenstein

Japanese-crafted Fakoshima sunglasses got the playful Ria Keburia treatment this season with a cartoonish collaboration referencing cat-eyes, pastel candy tones, and childlike interpretations of tortoiseshell.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of Kuznetksy Most 20

7. A Seriously Good Concept (Store)

Don’t want to shop at a knock-off-ridden bazaar or a crowded shopping center in Moscow? Head over to Kuznetsky Most 20, or KM20, a concept store run by It girl Olga Karput. It’s a haven for labels like Hood By Air, Jacquemus, and Ashish. But it’s not just the Western imports—KM20 is also one of the biggest supporters of motherland designers like Gosha Rubchinskiy, ZDDZ, Walk of Shame, Tigran Avetisyan, and Nina Donis. (And the best part? If you’re hungry after all that shopping, you can grab a vegan-friendly dish or a cold-pressed juice at the café.)

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of Liana Satenstein

The stylist and designer brings her street style cool to the famed Russian department store Tsum, where she has curated her own section, titled Nata4Tsum. There, you can find racks of homegrown designers like Walk of Shame and Vika Gazinskaya, as well as Western labels like Chloé, Alessandro Dell’Acqua, and Loewe.

 

 

 

Photo: Courtesy of IndexFlat / @indexflat

Advertisment Cheap Designer Bags Cheap Michael Kors Bags China Wholesale En Bag Air Max Shoes Wholesale Cheap Jordans On sale

A cozy Moscow nook reminiscent of a seriously chic home, INDEXflat is a slice of Georgia, stocked with Tbilisi-based creations like armor-inspired knitwear from LALO and mismatched footwear from Tatuna Nikolaishvili, as well as small Russian designers like Asiya Bareeva. Plus, you’ll be able to see the clothes in action—INDEXflat owner Anka Tsitsishvili is the shop’s best advertisement, often photographed wearing the pieces she stocks during Paris Fashion Week.