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| Photo credit to www.onitaa.co.uk |
I recently spent a weekend in London, and on my list of
shops to visit was O'nitaa. I've written about the designer collections
they stock, such as Nickie Nina which were showcased at the 2010 Asiana Elite Bride Show and more recently the Yousuf Bashir Qureshi instore launch.
However I'd never visited the store in person and was keen to see some of these designer outfits up close.
The first thing to note about Onitaa is the location. Based on Glenworth
Street, NW1, this store is nowhere near any of London's main asian
fashion hotspots. This isn't one of those shops you'll come across by
chance, it's somewhere you'll go out of your way to visit.
The store itself is unlike any other asian fashion shop I've ever
visited. It feels very grand when you walk in with its long walkway down
the centre of the store (which seems like it goes on forever!) and each
designer collection spread out on either side of you. I had my husband
with me when I visited and he described the store as being like every
girl's dream walk-in wardrobe.
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| Photo credit to www.onitaa.co.uk |
I took my time browsing, recognising some of the outfits
from fashion shows photos and from Onitaa's adverts in Asiana Magazine.
Most of the outfits in store are sample pieces so there was a level of
wear and tear/loose threads etc. but even then this was minimal and I
really liked a lot of what I saw...however this place is a definite no
no for asian fashion fans on a budget!! If I wasn't visiting for asian
fashion blog research purposes I probably would have left very quickly
after seeing the first few price tags - many of which were in the
thousands.
Whilst
in the store, I saw a customer trying on the very beautiful Zainab
Sajid outfit above (at least I think it was this one). I also had a
chance to check out the price tag for this, if I remember correctly it
was around £4000. I know asian bridalwear is increasingly becoming more
and more expensive but I think you'll agree with me that most ordinary
asian brides in the UK wouldn't be able to justify a cost like that -
nevermind spending that amount on a formal outfit!
When you take into consideration the average prices in O'nitaa, you
start to understand why they chose a location so far removed from the
other asian shopping areas like Green St, Southall, and Ilford Lane,
because O'nitaa's offering isn't really accessible to asian fashion fans
who don't have a big budget!
So
pricing aside, I asked, store owner, Onita to talk me through some of
her collections. She was keen to point out that she doesn't necessarily
go for "big names", instead, she goes for designers whose work impresses
her. One designer she highlighted was Asim Jofa, she highlighted the
craftmanship of his outfits - the stitching on the embroidering was so
perfectly finished to the point where you didn't get that "sticky"
effect you often have when your embroidery catches on other fabrics.
The collection by Arnab Sengupta (a double winner at last years IAFA Awards) also caught my eye - the amazing details that goes into each piece is barely captured in the photos I'd seen before.
My overall thoughts on Onitaa are that this shop is every girl's dream,
but for most people that's all it'll stay as - a dream! If you're after
designer name collections from India and Pakistan, without having to
travel there yourself, then O'nitaa is perfect for providing this
service...although if you're anything like me, you might need to save up
first!
If you're looking to visit O'nitaa, why not attend their launch for the
HSY Spring Summer 2011 Pret collection, which is taking place from the
16th - 19th June:
Do I have any blog readers who have shopped at O'nitaa? Leave a comment with your thoughts!
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