Five Questions with Odeeh

In 2008 the designer Otto Drögsler and Jörg Ehrlich founded the fashion label "Odeeh" and had their international breakthrough with fashion "Made in Germany".We met the two designer to talk about their experience at The Berliner Mode Salon, how to advance in fashion industry and about advices for young design talents.

What special features do you see in Berlin as a fashion capital?

Odeeh: Berlin is a capital with everything that goes with it. Controversially, eclectic, iridescent and fathomless - and all that at the same time . We like to be here because we like the creative restlessness and the spirit everyone can feel here. Berlin is the capital, tourist focus, always exciting. Partly also just because you can feel a certain "old-Berlin-provinciality " which made the certain difference to cities like London or New York. It's the same with fashion: You can have it all. And a lot of it, like nowhere else.Berlin is how it is. Disadvantages are not existent. Benefits either. We do not think in such categories.

You are represented at The Berliner Mode Salon – what are your personal experience?

Odeeh: The Berliner Mode Salon is our personal start of the season. An important place to show the new collection for the first time. Then it goes straight to Paris, because we meet there the first international buyers, in addition to all those who we will already meet in Berlin.

Christiane Arp and Markus Kurz initiated a real important thing because finally something happens. Indeed people often talked too much, beef and laments. Here , with the Berlin Mode Salon something concrete has started just once. Each time a little better, being compared with the others and enter into communication with others. That is what the fashion business is about. We like it very much because it is the most modern type of meeting and a platform, where you can see good German Design. We all are better and better every Salon, hopefully this season again. We are looking forward to it.

Where you get your inspiration from – Influenced to your location and your origin?

Odeeh: The inspiration is everyday's life. The permanent " keep your eyes open" and especially the exchange and discussion between the two of us. That's the best when you work as a team. An irreplaceable factor: If you have a great team working in the background, which permanently give feedback, that's half the battle. We're not going anywhere and think like : . . " now it's time going out and getting some inspiration." The result is boring, eventually not surprising concepts and ideas. For us it is important to combine various influences to bring together a new story, which we tell to our audience. Everything else is cliche and well known.

You have an international breakthrough - What advice do you have for young designers from Germany?

Odeeh: You always tend to common answers but we want to save us and all the others time now. The most important thing is: There is no bonus for German Design. There is only good or not so good design – all over the world! It is important to have a small team of people who you can trust, with whom it is fun to work and make sure that all areas are competent supported!

Alone is not possible, or only in a very small frame. The fashion business is cruel and nice at the same time. You need stamina and a large dose of realism, combined with stubbornness, humaneness and team spirit. And if you have the opportunity to work first within foreign structures, then you should do it! We believe that too many young designer directly after graduation already want to have their own label, that's not good . The sxceptions proves the rule, but we think it is better to gain experience first of all.

And network - that's what counts most.

What are you most looking forward during the Berlin Fashion Week ?

Odeeh: First of all to the Berliner Mode Salon and our installation. The Vogue/Zeit conference will be exciting, but also to the presentations of our friends and colleagues. We are excited about Dorothee Schuhmachers new collection, but equally on Tim Labenda, Bobby Kolade and many more – in fact to everything that will present itself and to good design. To the many small and large moments that make up Berlin. We look forward to good moments with people who tell their opinion regardless of the consequences about what we are doing.

More information about Odeeh:

http://odeeh.com/

More informations about the sponsorships for young fashion talents.
http://www.berlin.de/projektzukunft/wettbewerbe/foerderungen-berlin-fashion-week