In the Western bubble of fast fashion and high street retail giants, it’s easy to forget that the domination of what fashion means to us and our society isn’t necessarily a universal truth. For Maria Gulina, this had always been the case, living and originating in Russia until she was nine years old. “In Russia fashion wasn’t a big deal at all, or at least not at the time for me. Moving to London was a huge culture shock and I soon realised that you had to have the right shoes, and the right kind of school bag or you just weren’t deemed as cool enough.”
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| via maria-gulina.com |
Experiencing the very harsh and very real pressures that accompany the West’s affinity with materialism, it wasn’t until Maria had spent time settling into her surroundings for her to gain the confidence to experiment. “I realised that actually, I just wanted to stand out and express myself. But I couldn’t find any clothes I could really connect with and express myself with.”
It was this lack of connection to the clothes around her that lead Maria to customising her wardrobe, from painting, printing, ripping and sewing. Armed with a new thirst for fashion, her journey lead to a gap year. “Within the year I got heavily into photography and then went onto doing a fashion course at college, and then onto starting my first brand, with a bunch of friends. Which sadly didn’t work out but gave me the experience I needed to start my own Brand MARIA-GULINA in 2017.”
Thus, fashion brand MARIA-GULINA was born, and it’s brith sprang from truly humble beginnings. “The brand started in my bedroom and I still have that DIY mentality when creating. I bought a heat press and just started really having fun with it.” Her love of customisation came into its own in this venture, and Maria was able to truly express herself through styling for the fashion shoots, and photographed people she would network with through Instagram. “This meant I was constantly working with my friends and peers, those who inspire me the most. The brand really organically grew from that. I made it my full-time job.”
Instagram is the magic word in this brand’s evolution, as many company’s have experienced within the fashion-sphere, the social media app is not just beneficial, but imperative for brand success. “In all honesty, Instagram is what made it possible for me to create the brand. Starting up I would reach out to people whose style I liked and ask to shoot them in my stuff. Instagram enabled a community around the brand to connect.” It was these connections that spread the word of MARIA-GULINA, and the network of social media collaborations helped grow the brand, catapulted Maria’s clothing to be so much more than just a fashion label on social media, but a solidified, fully realised brand.
“A mixture of a lot of hard work and actually going out there personally and connecting with the people who wear my clothes is the foundation of what I do. The down side I would say is that the market has become so over saturated because of how accessible and possible it is now for people to start brands, trends move so quickly that a lot of small brands just can't keep up. And the impact that fast fashion is having on our planet is terrible.”
It is through the era of fast fashion and over saturation that is is more important than ever for brands to create timeless pieces, that are classic in design and never go out of style. The streetwear and comfort focus of MARIA-GULINA means that the piece stand the test of time, where trends can change as quickly as they arrive. “I’d say my main focus when designing is comfort, love, and all things that make me feel a sense of security and belonging. I grew up wearing hand-me-downs so I was always in comfy oversized clothes […] Coming from another country I had to really strive to find a sense of comfortability and belonging in this city, which I use as inspiration when creating.”
“Drawing Whether that is putting love hearts on my clothes to spread some love, or doing events that are inclusive and welcoming to everybody who attends them, I like to think my brand is a place everyone can feel part of it.” Such a stance on inclusivity is an admirable aspect of branding that fashion has been guilty of neglecting, but Maria has made a conscious effort to bring it to the forefront of her designs. “I find that the industry can be quite a cut throat space where a lot of people struggle to feel like they belong, and I try to create that space.”
When asked about what has stood out the most in her journey across the world and immersing herself into an entirely new industry, there were quite a few. “I'm naturally quite a humble person so any little thing that happens I get super excited about it. Everyday I’m proud just appreciating the life I’ve created by doing what I love; Seeing my stuff in music videos, people I admire message me to tell me they love my stuff. One of my favourite moments was when Kali Uchis wore my stuff on stage for her whole tour!”
And what can we expect from MARIA-GULINA in the future? “Definitely have a lot planned for the years ahead. I feel like I’m just getting started and have everything still yet to come. Everything recently has been about being online and I’ve found myself quite disconnected for a while during lockdown. So now that the world is opening back up, I’m trying to do a lot more pop ups, parties, community driven events etc. I have a couple printing workshops coming up that I'll be hosting, where people can create and print their own t-shirt. Follow us to stay in the loop!”
By Rose Cornish
Published in Lightwork Magazine
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