Leysan Khaziyeva: ‘People say that Tatars did not use to wear this, but we cannot simply copy it’

“I still keep a dress that is already 100 years old”

Leysan, you were one of the first designers in Tatarstan to decide to create modern clothes with national patterns. How did it all begin?

This year marks 20 years of my creative and entrepreneurial activity. In 2004, I opened my first studio, then I began sewing collections with Tatar patterns.

I am originally from Kazan, I have been sewing for as long as I can remember. The first time I picked up a needle was in kindergarten. In elementary school, I sewed clothes for my dolls, then I sewed for my nephews, and already in year 6, I sewed my first product for an adult woman. I remember she ordered a velvet dress, and this is a very difficult material. I did it. I think I got my talent from my mother, her grandmother was the best seamstress in the village. I still have a dress that my great-grandmother sewed, it is already 100 years old.

When did the Tatar flavour appear in your clothes?

This was the next stage of my activity. It all started with the first show of Muslim fashion, which was organised in Kazan. My father offered me an invitation to this event. I agreed, and then I thought that I should not just watch the process but take part in it myself. I called the organisers and offered to show my children's collection in the national style. True, it only had four items, but that did not stop me.

Before that, I completed a gold embroidery course at the National Museum, which I got into purely by chance: I simply saw an ad during one of my visits and decided to study. I applied these skills in creating a national children's collection. The models at my show were my daughter and a two-year-old son. Immediately after the show, TNV journalists approached me. You could say that it was thanks to them that people started recognising me. Since then, I have had a friendship with the channel that continues to this day. It was here that I tried myself as a host of the column, teaching viewers how to create beauty in the national style with their own hands.

“Every dress has its own aura”

You dress many stars of the Tatar stage, how does the process of creating a new image go, what whims do you have to fulfil?

I have been a friend of many stars for many years. We understand each other without words. They simply ask me: ‘How do you see me?’, and creativity begins. Now I can only afford to work with those with whom I have established close contact, with those who trust me. If a person comes and starts to be capricious, I try to find a reason to refuse to work with him. I have faced this more than once. I can understand whether I will work with them or not even by the way the door opens and the way a person enters. It also happens that a person is picky in order to lower the price. In this case, I just keep the dress for myself.

There was once a case. We were sewing a dress, it turned out to be very expensive. But the high price was agreed upon with the customer. The dress was embroidered with beautiful embroidery, stones, beads. The woman said at each fitting that she liked everything very much, then took the dress and suddenly that same night began to call and cry that she did not have that much money, and that she did not like the colour, in general, everything was wrong. And her anniversary was the following day. I offered to take the dress back. In the end, we did so. Later I gave it away so as not to keep it to myself. Every dress has its own aura.

How much have the prices for creating a designer dress changed in recent years?

The minimum cost of a dress with embroidery is 50,000 rubles. My most expensive dress cost about 300,000. Prices have increased significantly, primarily for fabric. There are no problems with delivery. I buy material from Moscow stores, and often shop in Istanbul. But the cost of fabric has skyrocketed two and a half or even three times. That is, if a few years ago I could buy a good piece of fabric for a thousand rubles, now I have to pay 3,000 for the same piece. Now I have to be more rational in using fabrics. Previously, I was not afraid to cut off too much and, if necessary, buy a new piece at my own expense, now the situation has changed. Now you treat the fabric with more caution. Therefore, I prefer to sew a dress mock-up from cheaper material in order to avoid mistakes.

Everything has become more expensive. Including fittings. Even small decorative items that could be bought for pennies have skyrocketed in price. We are faced with a situation when groups, folk artists turn to us — it's just some kind of pain. Groups are given grants from the state to sew costumes. Having divided the amount between everyone, it turns out that for one suit from head to toe, with fabrics, sewing, with all the decor, 10,000 remains. But you can't sew a good suit for this amount — it's impossible. You get a modest option that customers may not like. But you need to understand the ratio of money and effort spent.

“We are thinking about developing a business in the mass market niche”

Is domestic production of fabrics and accessories still available?

We have a very difficult time producing fabrics, especially those that are suitable for making clothes. Components for decoration are not manufactured either, everything is brought from China. Logistics has become very expensive. The same situation is with sewing machines. We are trying to update them, we prefer Japanese ones. There are deliveries, but at a different price. Sewing equipment, like fabrics, has become at least twice as expensive. The last purchase last year cost us more than 240,000 rubles, before we would not have spent even 100,000 on this.

I am currently testing new directions. I no longer want custom tailoring, I want a store. So far, we are talking about online stores under Leysan Khaziyeva’s brand. I am not directly involved in their development, but I am following them with great interest. Modern clothes are presented here, they are suitable for a wide range of consumers. We are trying to offer both products with Tatar embroidery and those that have no national flavour at all and can be perceived as ordinary quality clothing.

In addition, I am now considering plus size clothing. We are launching production. I think this may be promising, since people can find clothes up to size 48 in any store, but not larger sizes. I am trying everything myself.

In general, we are now thinking about developing a business in the mass market niche. We are still studying the market. There are enough problems. In Kazan, renting retail outlets is very expensive. In more or less decent places, rent costs from 100,000 rubles a month. Therefore, we are considering the option of opening our stores in other regions. For example, we were recently in Vladikavkaz, we were amazed at how beautiful the streets and districts are, how many people are beautifully dressed in European style. By the way, their rent is not as expensive as ours.

In Kazan, our market is oversaturated, the competition is high. Now it is growing in making clothes with national flavour. But such clothes still cannot be widely consumed. National clothes are almost always handmade, which means they are expensive clothes. For this reason, they remain inaccessible to many. But I believe that we still need to go out to the masses with clothes containing national flavour. So that we do not lose ourselves. Now a lot is being done to popularise such clothes, but nevertheless, you will not meet many people with national attributes on the streets on an ordinary day. Only if it is not a special event like Hay Bazaar or Sabantuy.

“We cannot simply copy what existed centuries ago”

And yet there are many people willing to start their own design business. What initial capital will be required?

If you approach it seriously, then at the start you need to have about 500,000 rubles. State grants can help with this, but you have to prove the uniqueness and significance of your products. Unfortunately, we like to drown each other. Often, when discussing national clothing or accessories, historians begin to say that this is wrong, that in reality the Tatars did not wear such things. But we cannot simply copy what existed centuries ago. The world is changing, fashion is changing. But we can correctly, beautifully and appropriately stylise historical costumes. Such products will no longer copy the historically correct form and this is normal.

On the other hand, you can start a business with just one sewing machine in your arsenal. But here the main question arises — how to find a client. You need to think about how you will sell your goods — this is very difficult. Especially when it comes to clothes. Either the colour is wrong, or the style is wrong, or the embroidery is not pleasing. Like in the movies: ‘Do you have a robe like this, only with mother-of-pearl buttons?’

So, does it mean that designers who create clothes with national symbols need platforms to sell their products? Are there such places in Tatarstan?

There are objectively few such places. There are places on the territory of the Kremlin and Tatar settlement, but these are more souvenir products. There are various markets where designer items are offered. You have to pay a fee to participate in them. But no one guarantees that a large number of people will come, and even more so that your product will be bought.

There are fairs, but they are held only on certain dates and here, too, the probability of selling a product is small. In this regard, thematic festivals work best, when a person specifically comes to buy something for himself. We are talking primarily about Hay Bazaar festival. There is always a very large flow of people here. This year I will participate for the first time — this is also a kind of challenge for me.

As for a permanent site, there is no such thing in Kazan today. But we know that it will appear in the near future. I mean the Central Department Store, which is now being converted into a Crafts Centre according the instructions of Rais of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov. This place would be a help for those who promote national creativity. However, here too it is not yet entirely clear on what conditions the places will be provided. We can just hope for proper organisation.