Opia

When she first opened Opia, Claudia Desax mainly focused on fashion from Asian designers. She knew most of them personally from her time in Bangkok: ‘I lived in the city for more than year,’ Claudia says. She was studying scenography at Zurich University of the Arts and had an opportunity to do an exchange semester in Thailand, which she followed up with an internship. This allowed Claudia to immerse herself in the local fashion scene.

In Zurich she generally shopped for clothes at the second-hand store (partly for financial reasons), but in Bangkok she suddenly found she could afford to buy designer pieces. ‘The clothes weren’t just cheaper, they were also more unusual.’ Claudia came back with a suitcase crammed with clothes and a head full of new ideas. ‘The vibe was quite different back then.’ Social media was still in its infancy, so she wasn’t in constant touch with what was going on in Zurich. ‘It did me good to really get away from it all.’

On her return to Switzerland, Claudia graduated and began working as a scenographer, accompanied by odd jobs in hospitality. ‘That’s what happens to a lot of people who study design,’ she says with a laugh. ‘Not many of us find our dream job straight away.’ Claudia opened her first store in district 4 in 2008. She received an interest-free loan from the city as part of the Langstrasse Plus project, which aimed to breathe new life into the neighbourhood.

Opia has changed premises a few times but has always remained in district 4. ‘But now the store is more expensive and exclusive,’ says Claudia. Many of the brands sold at Opia approached Claudia directly – ‘Opia now has an international reputation.’ 

She found the others herself: ‘I regularly visit different cities.’ She also finds new labels by leafing through magazines and scrolling through Instagram. So what about the internet? Claudia doesn’t think it’s a threat, quite the opposite in fact. ‘My online shop allows me to reach customers in New York and Tokyo,’ and small manufacturers and young designers can advertise their products online. ‘I think that’s fantastic.’

Claudia has known most of her customers for years, ‘but I’m getting more and more younger customers.’ Sometimes they have to save up to buy a particular item, ‘but that means they appreciate it all the more,’ says Claudia. ‘Then serving them gives me twice as much pleasure.’

Claudia has known most of her customers for years, ‘but I’m getting more and more younger customers.’ Sometimes they have to save up to buy a particular item, ‘but that means they appreciate it all the more,’ says Claudia. ‘Then serving them gives me twice as much pleasure.’