How to Dress Differently in Prague

In Prague, if you’ve ever bought an H&M or C&A top that you’ve worn just once before burying in your wardrobe, you have probably participated in the growing throw-away fashion epidemic.

A handful of new stores are making it their mission to bring you repurposed, well-made, and original clothing. Affordable, too. And you will get the warm and fuzzies from being a part of the small-label fashion movement.

It’s like buying kale at Náplavka, if kale were a pair of leather ankle boots.

The love-child of a Czech-Slovak couple, this vintage clothing store opened on Veverkova, possibly Prague’s coolest street at the moment, earlier this month. It specializes in carefully curated vintage pieces that are chosen for color, pattern, and quality. And they are insanely affordable.

Owners Martina and Edie tell us: “People are tired of simply following trends. At the same time people become aware of how the clothes they buy affect the environment and working conditions in the areas where they are produced.”

Tops, tunics, and skirts in funky patterns that began life as Eastern Bloc castaways, become fashion statements hanging from tree-branch merch racks lit by naked bulbs. Retro beaded wallets and Stevie Nicks-style shawls are just some of the finds starting at only 150 CZK.

Debuting this past holiday season on Klimentská Street, Showroom, says one of the project’s founders, Aneta Vojtová, brings “five designers from different fashion fields (jewelry, clothes, shoes, and other accessories)” together under one roof. “We will present on guest designer every four months,” she adds. 

The Showroom concept blurs the line between art and fashion. Says Ms. Vojtová, “Our customers will experience another atmosphere during their shopping. They can meet and talk to designers. They can also see the working process, because some designers have their workshops there.” 

No Rush boutique opened in Karlín in late 2014. It is owned by Polish expat Eliza Kowalska who says, “Praha is amazing! But all I missed here was a place where I could buy a high quality hand-made wardrobe, which is not necessarily ruining my wallet. Not the factory made, repeatable outfits created somewhere between cost-cut department and assembly line.” 

Men, women, and children alike will find their fashion statement here: Comfy quilted tops and bottoms for kids in silly patterns and prints, as well as oversized sweaters, fun reading glass frames, A-line skirts in a variety of wacky motifs (Frog Prince) and colors, and melting-popsicle pendants for grownups. 

Kowalska insists that “Supporting sweat shops in Asia is no longer cool nor trendy. That is why most of my fashion designers come from Poland.” 

Perhaps the oldest of the bunch, having opened in summer 2014, Unikat is tucked into Pasáž Platýz. It is a shop for women that stocks indie-label interantional brands which have previously been hard to come by in Prague.

Owners Lucie and Tereza firmly reject the idea of throw-away fashions: “We believe that fashion is not about mindless shopping. Pieces from us become long-term residents of your closet.”