Ulyana Sergeenko, Couture Collector & Street-Style Star turned Designer

Ulyana Sergeenko (born 30 August,1981 in Kazakhstan, Russia), the wife of billionaire insurance oligarch, Danil Khachaturov, first came to the fashion world’s attention, not as a designer but as an elite shopper. From around 2011, she graced the front row of the couture shows, diligently attending Dior, Valentino and Jean Paul Gaultier, among others, and just as diligently changing her outfits several times a day. With her old school glamour (big swooshy skirts, small, feminine waists, and limousine-only shoes) she became one of the first social media style stars and according to her telling, soon grew frustrated that pieces she had collaborated on with designers were later appearing in collections with no credit given to her contributions……

Ulyana Sergeenko Street Style Star

So she did what any sensible billionaire fashionista would do and launched her own label. And not in an unassuming, quiet way with private one-to-one appointments, but with a full catwalk attack.

While it’s impossible to estimate her commercial success (like all couture labels, this one is uncommunicative when it comes to the nitty gritty of actual numbers), it undeniably has its followers, not least among them fellow Russian Natalia Vodianova who, being married to Antoine Arnault, son of Bernard, has her pick of LVMH’s sprawling stable of high end French designers.

Natalia Vodianova in Ulyana Sergeenko couture

Sergeenko’s front row featured Carine Roitfeld, Grace Coddington, and a coterie of her own high-spending countrywomen, who give Sergeenko a standing ovation when she comes out for her bow. Clients are Beyonce, Dita von Teese, Kim Kardashian, Lady Gaga and around 160 or so other.

The make of these clothes – all produced in Moscow, where Sergeenko employs some 100 seamstresses – is impressive, often highlighting traditional Russian crafts. As for the aesthetics: these veer towards the traditional: wasp waists, sweetheart necklines, richly embellished fabrics. Her collections embraced its Russian heritage – flounced gypsy skirts, pixilated embroideries, filmy, puff-sleeved negligees, hand-made lace tunics – and a richesse of bustiers.

What Sergeenko lacks in formal training, she makes up for with conviction.

Fall 2011 Collection