.jpg)
“When our manufacturing was collapsing in the 1990s and Mr. Godmanis (the Prime Minister of the day Ivars Godmanis – I.M.) announced that we wouldn’t have manufacturing because we would be a land of tourism, I had an instinct to preserve that which was good: our values. We have now sabotaged our light manufacturing: it is like a dove that we have released to the wind. The understanding in Latvia was that profit was going to be created by large enterprises. That is not the case.” Asnate Smeltere
The fashion house Salons A is atypical amongst Latvia’s new era design; in fact it is a unique phenomenon. It was created in 1989, the time of transition, when one political system was collapsing and another was being created on its rubble: slowly, and with difficulty. The fashion house survived the crisis of the 1990s, when Latvia’s industrial giants, including the legendary Rīgas Modeļu nams (the predecessor of the salon), went bankrupt or were squandered one after another. Asnate Smeltere – one of the leading models at Modeļu nams – has proved herself to be an equally talented business woman and has held fast with her fashion house to reach its 20 year anniversary, which was celebrated late last year. Will Salons A survive the second collapse of the economic sector? It was possible to overcome the first economic crisis not only due to the potential for economic reorganisation, but also because of the huge enthusiasm of that era, the conviction that difficulties are temporary, that together we are building a new, a better nation.
Part of Latvia’s design thinkers still linger in their memories and impressions of the scope and scale of Soviet era industry, when the enterprises under the Union maintained laboratories for the development of new technologies and whole workshops of artists: the huge deficit of qualitative products in the Soviet Union swallowed everything that was offered. The situation today has changed radically, and not only in Latvia. Today it is not easy to remain steady in the international market, even if you are a mighty industrial leader with traditions and many years of experience. In Latvian conditions viability is demonstrated by small, mobile design businesses, which are able to flexibly react to changes: what is expected from the designer is not just knowledge of the professional field, but also skills or at least the energy to become entrepreneurs themselves, because even the few large scale manufacturers do not have vacancies for designers. This tendency is confirmed by statistics – even during the crisis in Latvia there are new, small-scale companies which offer products with “design” as a surplus value. In light of this, Salons A could hardly have been endowed with experience or some special business knowledge; it is rather that Asnate Smeltere possesses an excellent business sense, because at the very outset of the company, it was framed in the context of a “small fashion house”. While a part of the young, energetic and hopeful entrepreneurs went bankrupt in the mid-90s, particularly those who oriented themselves to the external market (this process was also caused by the state’s political decisions, which killed export), Salons A successfully sold all of its production in 1995-1996 here in Latvia and did not strive for international contracts. However, the international arena was not closed – the fashion house has been the representative of the Latvian cultural identity in international cultural exchange programmes a number of times, when a company with a national flavour and its achievements had to be exhibited. Also, the salon has a different take on identity: even in the romantically coloured beginnings of the new nation Asnate Smeltere saw beyond the traditional Latvian patterns of Auseklītis and the Lielvarde belt. The company has never oriented itself towards traditional linen articles, as does practically every manufacturer who announces their affiliation with Latvia. Asnate Smeltere emphasises “soft” fabrics in her products, such as silk and chiffon. In a way, the activity of Salons A reveals another typical feature of Latvian industry: Asnate Smeltere, who is the head designer in her fashion house, does not have any professional design qualifications. Obviously this has been compensated by her huge experience as a model, working for a number of decades shoulder to shoulder with the best Latvian fashion designers of the time, who in that time occupied leading positions in the territory of the Soviet Union. Up until now the fashion house has been capable of not only satisfying the needs of specific target audiences with its products, but also appealing to a broad cross-section.
The fashion industry has branched out so extensively on a global level, that one gets the impression that there are no free seats on the train. Not only are all of the largest international brands available in Latvia, but also our nearest neighbours are tirelessly trying to break into our market with their new companies. Is Latvian fashion design, as well as the rest of its creative industries, able to compete, and if so, then compete with what? Asnate Smeltere is convinced of this, and she has proved it over twenty years, not only by building up a profit-making business which pays its taxes, but also creating 24 jobs for the nation. Smeltere sees the brand Made in Latvia as a competitive instrument, because of our unique offerings, our identity as well as our excellent craftsmanship. Salons A has been developed on the basis of
, and took over the premises at 24 Kaļķu Street in the Old Town. During the very end of the Soviet era Alfrēds Rubiks, the mayor at that time, valued the meaning of the tourism industry in the development of the city and ordered for the first floors of the old town building to be opened to the public. Rīgas Modeļu nams began working on the creation of a public exhibition space, and later this idea developed into the current Salons A. Visitors, particularly during the tourist season, express a heightened interest in products Made in Latvia, including Latvian fashion design. Similar fashion houses create the public face of every cultural city: they are symbols of identity that also have economic potential. Unfortunately, the current crisis in Latvia has completely different features than the previous crisis, and during 20 years of independence the nation has not developed long-term thinking – the only good thing is what you have in your belly today. No matter what politicians and the responsible institutions say, the sex tourist is actually dearer to the nation than the cultural tourist. At the moment Salons A is hit the hardest by the pre-crisis rental fees of the Old town storefronts, which belong to the state. The fashion house has its own survival plan, but it is not currently being revealed in its entirety.
.jpg)