Berlin Concept Store: fair produced fashion, accessories and home design + colour type consultation

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Fashion shows, lectures and fairs, there was something for everyone interested in fashion. FIV Magazine was allowed to interview Johanna Groß. She presented handmade fashion from Berlin and other collections in the showroom. We talked to her about the big topic of sustainability, the role of women in fashion and the exciting color analysis.

Dear Johanna, introduce yourself to our readers. Who are you, where are you from…? 🙂

Twelve years ago, after studying sociology and working in market research for several years, I moved from Munich to Berlin. to Berlin. I am the owner of kultpur, a Berlin concept store in Kre uzberg, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Besides fairly produced fashion, accessories and home design from smaller labels, I now offer color type consulting in an adjoining space.

Showroom during Fashion Week – super cool! How did it come about?

10 years ago the platform Showroom Days was launched during the Fashion Week, which was supported by satellites of the BFW and presented in the media. We took the great chance to be listed and presented collections of about 15 Austrian fashion labels in the first kultpur fashion room. Over the years, we have exhibited the new collections of smaller, fairly producing fashion labels in the kultpur fashion room twice a year during Fashion Week, often in connection with an event such as a small show.

The Berlin Fashion Week is now over, you were there. With the Fashion Week event fashion * sustainability * just shine interested people were allowed to look at your fashion.

How did the name come about? What is the meaning behind the title?

The topic of sustainability in fashion has become increasingly important – and has always been a central concern of kultpur, although we have never advertised it very boldly, but rather as a basic building block of our concept. The cooperation with small labels, whose products tell stories and which are mostly produced in small series or as unique pieces, inevitably entails a fair production for us. Even if some of the fashion is not made of certified fabrics, some labels work e.g. with upcycled materials or with leftover high-quality fabrics of big brands, which otherwise would have been disposed of. With just shine colour type consulting, we are building a bridge to conscious, sustainable consumption: we want to show customers how they can shop in a more targeted and thus more sustainable way with the help of a colour palette that is individually tailored to them. Not every trendy color suits everyone – and with the knowledge of the best individual colors, it is possible to avoid bad purchases, for example.

Who are the designers behind the collections and how did you decide to showcase just that in the showroom?

Our focus is above all on a selection of current, handmade fashion in colors that make the customers shine – and thus bring lasting joy. The collections by Velibor and l’astretti from Berlin or lila from Vienna are a great fit here. Accessories like the jewellery by Jorinde Nisse, the silk scarves by MOCOMOCO Berlin, the caps by Jokotraki or the shoes by Uluayak, made in a small traditional manufactory in Turkey, can complement the outfit wonderfully – or even make the decisive accent.

You told us in advance that the theme would be sustainability and choosing colors based on personality & strengths. Why did you choose the topic of sustainability? Do you also deal with this point privately?

Special, unusual pieces have always made me happy – be it in the living area or in fashion. These don’t necessarily have to be high-priced products, but they are mostly handmade things. Some of these favourite pieces have been with me for twenty years. When mass production became more and more important, I wanted to counteract this 10 years ago by founding kultpur: my concern is to pass on the appreciation and enthusiasm for selected, handmade and unique products, i.e. favourite pieces, to the customers. Conscious, sustainable and responsible consumption is one of the most important values my parents passed on to me. You can’t do everything right – but it’s easier when you see that sustainability brings deceleration and, above all, can also bring joy.
How widespread is the topic of sustainability in fashion?
Awareness is growing and it seems to be getting easier and easier to buy sustainably and fairly produced fashion, it’s almost a new trend.
That’s very good, but here too there are gradations in the certificates – not all organic is the same. And ultimately, in my eyes, the rethinking must continue, because what is the point of buying the new trends in the best organic quality four times a year, and after a short time they are barely worn in the wardrobe, because something new is already in?
I find it more honest to buy 3 dresses of small locally producing labels made of maybe not certified, but in Germany manufactured fabrics, which I like to wear for years, because I know that they really fit my type.
Since a good colour type and style consultation is oriented towards the customer’s own colours and face shape etc. and these do not change greatly (apart from the greying of the hair), the result helps to shop in a more focused and thus more sustainable way.

You explicitly mentioned women in the preliminary interview. Why do you want to reach women in particular with these topics? What makes up the color analysis and what does it bring to women in everyday life?

The industry knows that women like to be fashion conscious, which is why fashion is a very big topic in the media for women. New trends seem to be constantly being set, and it is suggested to us women that we have to keep up with them in order to make a good impression. A color analysis based on the customer’s own colors, however, can show her, for example, that nude shades do not underline her type at all and that she should therefore not jump on the corresponding trend. I would like to show that a color type consultation brings a deceleration in the consumption with itself, besides the purse relieves and the woman even spares to appear tired and bland (in the Nude tones) instead of powerful and present. A conscious choice of colour and style of clothing underlines our individual type and strengthens us – which can, for example, help us to appear more conscious and clear in a professional context. It is not the loud voice or the flashy outfit that counts. Even a delicate, quiet woman can be very present if she doesn’t dress up in “loud” colors, but dresses according to her type, because she can appear much more authentic that way. And it is especially close to my heart that we women do not hide or let ourselves be insecure, but that we live our full potential.

Do you think women today are stylish?

No. Many are styled down to the last detail and dressed in the latest trend, supposedly confident in style. I see behind it rather insecurity. Media and influencers have the say and you can see, for example, in trendy areas of Berlin, the changing trends pass by, because many women try to copy everything. I find that boring.
For me, stylish women are those who consciously wear their own style (preferably one that suits their type) and who don’t just follow the latest fashions, but show (their) character.

Our readers always find tips from the experts exciting. What are your 3 best tips for shopping in a goal-oriented and sustainable way?

  1. Treat yourself to a colour type/style consultation – this will train your eye and your individualised colour passport will support you when shopping (only: the right advice is what matters! It is important that the analysis is based on your own colours).
  2. Take your time, go to small shops where regionally produced collections are offered or where you can be told something about the origin of the fashion.
  3. Get inspired by trends, but stick to your own style and the colors that make you shine.
To the point: “buy less, choose well, make it last” (Vivienne Westwood)

Why don’t you tell us your 3 favorite brands that emphasize sustainability?

  1. the Austrian label MILCH- fashion from “retired men’s trousers and shirts”. MILCH has brought the topic of upcycling to life and is for me one of the few upcycling labels that manages to implement the topic in a high-quality, casual and elegant way. With great pleasure we had presented the fashion at kultpur for years. Unfortunately, the production is now discontinued at the end of June – so use your last chance in the online shop!
  2. In the accessories sector Sag+SAL (unique bags made in Berlin from offset printing blankets) and K.W.D., bags and accessories made from hose, cash register conveyor belt and air mattress. In my eyes, these brands were creative pioneers in terms of sustainability through upcycling.
  3. Just shine 🙂 The synergy of color type consulting and handmade fashion in colors that let you shine from one source will soon be expanded to a first small in-house production.