The Noria Anis clothing brand appeared in May 2019 when Georgiana Roşca, who accumulated seven years of experience in a multinational active on the FMCG market in which she held several positions, resigned the warm place in the corporation to become an entrepreneur, and for the end of the current year he estimates business of 35,000 euros.

"The amount invested initially was 10,000 euros from own funds, mainly representing prototypes, initial stocks and the creation of a visual identity, such as logo, product photo sessions, marketing campaign", Georgiana Roşca, founder of Noria Anis.

In 2019, the entrepreneur managed to attract financing through European funds in the amount of 22,000 euros, money that supported the development of her own workshop.

"I opened the workshop in August, in Galati, and currently I have two experienced and passionate people in the team. We also have external collaborators, but at the same time, we are talking about small workshops, family businesses."

Georgiana Roşca explained that opening her own workshop allowed her to create more special creations and clothing items, which she would not have been able to develop in other workshops.

"So the plan for the future is to include more handmade items or elements in the collections, as was the knitted merino wool collar in the FW20 collection."

Currently, although it has only been a little over a year since the Romanian brand started its activity, the clothing pieces created by Noria Anis can be purchased both online and offline.

"Currently, Noria Anis products are available on our own website, in our showroom in the Cotroceni area, but also in a partner multibrand showroom in the Piaţa Romană area and on other platforms of Romanian designers."

At the end of 2020, Noria Anis started collaborating with the Fashion Days platform - the largest online fashion retailer in Romania, with business of around 325 million lei in 2019, owned by the eMAG group - which meant for the Romanian brand an opening to the markets from Bulgaria and Hungary, where the Fashion Days platform is active, added the entrepreneur.

Also, the COVID-19 pandemic has hampered the activity and development plans of Georgiana Roşca, who in the first part of 2020, when the new coronavirus began to spread in Europe, did not know "where to take it."

"I decided to keep the same line of the brand, but with a more relaxed aesthetic. Thus, we thought of pieces that can be worn at home, during online calls, and then can be easily integrated into the office wardrobe. The cocktail area was the most affected, as a result of the decrease in the number of social events. That's why this year I focused more on the daywear line and less on cocktail dresses."

The entrepreneur mentioned that the price for a day dress starts from 360 lei.

Also, a positive change generated by the pandemic is represented by the fact that, last year, Romanians turned their attention to local brands, showing support for Romanian businesses.

"The year 2020 meant a greater openness of consumers to local products, and the fashion area is no exception. The customers of Romanian fashion brands are women who decide on the purchase not only from an aesthetic point of view, they put quality first, they appreciate the fact that the respective product is made in small series."

The entrepreneur's plans for the current year aim to expand in the online environment and reach a turnover of around 35,000 euros.

"I want to continue expanding in the online area and developing my own sales channels", concluded Georgiana Roşca.

Author: Alexandra Cepăreanu