The most defining characteristic of this collection is tailoring, which, says Nehera owner Ladislav Zdut, is the very “substance” of the brand. Here pants aren’t slipping off hip bones as is the fashion this season; they’re at the waist and pleated. More grown-up than tomboy, but more casual than traditional office attire, they respond to the present desire for clothes that can segue from home to office and back again. Comfortable but polished seems to be what women are demanding these days.
At Nehera, clothes are designed to be in service of the wearer, allowing her to adapt them to match her moods. Some pieces can even be customized. A puffer jacket is made of two halves buttoned together; so is a trench that also has adjustable sleeves. There are also detachable pouch pockets, some bulky to strap on or off at will. In light of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, neighbor to Slovakia (Nehera is headquarter in Bratislava), they conjure migration, which was not at all the intention. Hands-free was more the idea. Pockets, said Zdut on a call “are comfortable because you don’t need to have a handbag in your hands; you have empty hands for your work, or for hugging your children or somebody you love. So pockets aren’t just functional at Nehera; they are symbolic to us.”
We live in a dissonant world, which Nehera wanted to address this season through a somewhat glitchy print that was meant to contrast the analog with the digital. This message doesn’t really come through, but there is plenty of succor to be found in the soft armor of Nehera’s suiting.
