An impressive clothing brand from Hungary: BRÄZIA – PHOTOS

According to Tropical Magazine, Alexandra Bráz is a girl from Eger who, although loves her hometown, found her true self in Budapest at the age of nineteen. At that time, her studies pushed her away from her passion. In 2010, however, she dreamed a big one and created her own brand, named BRÄZIA. Today, almost all of her time is devoted to design and business, but she often lives for her other passion, travel. Nonetheless, work cannot ever stop. Hence, she always has time for photo shooting while resting at inspiring places.

Photo: BRÄZIA

How did you decide to establish your own clothing brand? Was it an old plan of yours or you were driven by a sudden idea?

I’ve always been very interested in design, but I didn’t think I would ever be more concerned about it. Whatever I bought, I always reshaped it, or I just made my own clothes. When I moved to Budapest because of modeling, I got to many places. At this time, I got so much positive feedback on my clothes that I started to be more interested in the design. My former boyfriend, who worked in the fashion industry, also encouraged me. So, I got into it in the second year of my college studies. I was nineteen years old at that time.

Have you ever studied some kind of fashion?

I studied an entirely different subject at college. I was interested in Math, Programing and Computer Science. I’ve learned this profession from books and videos on an autodidact way. But it has been a lot of work to develop myself from the amateur level, and got where I’m today.

Tell me a little about the birth of BRÄZIA, please!

When I decided to start building my own brand, I was still a rookie. Me and my environment had no experience in business, either. Before my first meetings, I tried to learn how to do it from movies; then, I expressed myself as much as I could, while my knees were shaking. Fortunately, people soon became aware of my work, since after my second presentation I received an offer immediately, and by the end of the year I had my own business. You should know that I’m not just drawing my designs, nor do I trust the further steps to professionals. Apart from designing the dresses, I put together the cutting design, make the sample pieces, choose the material for it, I deliver it even to the dressmaker, the needle-man and the shop. Furthermore, I even do the handcraft decorations quite often, and I also keep in touch with the resellers. I’m a maximalist, so I’m trying to do everything more than 100% on my own at the same time. However, I already realized that I need help sometimes. Thus, I’ve given one or two tasks out of my hands that do not affect the design process.

Photo: BRÄZIA

Starting your own brand is not an easy task. Did you have any help?

Yes, it was very difficult. I’ve been doing it for almost eight years, and maybe, I can tell you now that I have the team I’m willing to work with, and we have the trust in each other. In the beginning, my mother helped me because she can sew. So, she helps me to prepare the sample pieces even today. Since I was not a professional in the beginning, it meant a lot. Occasionally, dresses didn’t look the way as I designed them, but we managed to fix them right away “in house,”
Since I started with modeling, I had many friends from the profession, so I could count on them during my presentations. Some of the girls work for me from the very beginning. In addition, I did it all by myself, and built the brand out of nowhere. Thus, it was a very long and difficult journey.

Who inspired you? What is your style?

I design in several styles, but my real love is the long evening dress. I’ve started with that long ago, and now I’m trying to trace this style back to BRÄZIA. The gorgeous dresses of Elie Saab and Michael Costello are the closest to me. I’m always amazed by the way they emphasize femininity in two different ways in their collections. And, when it comes to cocktail dresses or streetwear, my absolute favorite is Olivier Rousteing, the designer of Balmain. He is a genius.

Who do you recommend your clothes?

I used to say that from 16 years to 40 years anyone can find the style in my collections. I still believe it, because my collections are made in such a wide spectrum that really everything is available: cocktail dresses, evening dresses, bikinis, pants, t-shirts and skirts. Every piece has a solid and an extra version as well. You should know that the pieces of my first collection are still available to this day. So, a lot of styles have gathered in the past eight years.

Photo: BRÄZIA

How would you determine yourself? Your clothes reflect your style only, or are you trying to fulfill individual wishes too?

My style of clothing is very varied, and I’ve changed a lot since the brand exist. At first, I favored the more daring cocktail dresses. Today, I prefer the more ordinary and comfortable wear. I like combinable pieces and the one size dresses, that I simply tie on myself and they stand their ground with a pair of sports shoes or high heels. They absolutely reflect my taste. But, I’ve never made a dress that I wouldn’t wear myself, even if it is fashionable. However, there are some old pieces I wouldn’t wear now. Though, they are still popular, and the younger generation still likes them. So, they are available in my collection even today. We also fulfil individual wishes, but rarely. I think, anyone can choose a favorite easily from the hundreds of styles I have created.

What are your plans for the future?

Now, I’m focusing on long evening dresses. This summer, they will be the main pieces of my collection. While the main goal with BRÄZIA is the further expansion of the brand in Hungary and the neighboring countries as well.

Photo: BRÄZIA

Photo: BRÄZIA

Photo: BRÄZIA

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Source: by Anita SZABÓ-KÓRÉ, Fashion Editor – TROPICAL Magazine