‘’Belgrade fashion week’ was the email’s title and while checking my fashion week agenda I’v realised I had a very little idea of where Belgrade actually is. A short online researched shows a big grey Balkans city with a complicated past. My curiosity took over my common sense and I’ve RSVP ‘’Yes’’ to a fashionable trip to Belgrade.
A short pleasant flight from Rome and I've landed in the Serbian capital. Belgrade was never on my travel bucket list and my first question to the driver who picked me up from the airport was: ‘’is it safe to walk around?’’
And safe it was. One of my great surprises was the kindness of the locals and the pleasant walks from The Metropol Palace Hotel to the nearby hip and chic restaurants like madera and Smokvica. Delicious local and international cuisine combined with a fantastic kind service is the recipe for success in all the restaurants I’ve visited during this trip.
In a short walking distance somewhere between my hotel and the museum of national pride, Nikola Tesla I’ve discovered Fab Living. A unique concept shop curated by founder Una Nikolic, offers a wide rage of local fashion, interior and product designers.
Like in their restaurants, Serbians were creating local fashion catered for an international crowd. Belgrade design district is a shopping gallery hosting the best that Serbia has to offer. It is where you can shop the runway and where independent local designers present their work all year round. Handmade garments by emerging and established local designers can be found in a bargain price between 50-300 euro.
My experience #FromTheFrontRow of Belgrade fashion week was like nowhere else. The 500 guests venue was a photography paradise with fantastic wide and well lit runway, and beautiful local models. The collections presented a combination of ready-to-wear aw1819 commercial with a local aim, ss19 Serbian with international attention, best of students work and season-less independent designers.
This season BFW collaborated with the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Belgrade to bring Starsica to the Serbian runway. Creative director and founder Ike Seungik Lee presented his collection for the third time in London Fashion Week and brought it for the first time to The Balkans.
The city’s economic weakness is actually its biggest advantage when it comes to tourism. A luxury weekend in Belgrade will cost less than half a day in Paris. Top wine and dine experiences in world class restaurants, fashion designers shopping spree and unforgettable wild nightlife. Belgrade is where you can live like a queen with unlimited budget.
