Love What You Do and Follow Your Dream: Tinatin Magalashvili

With the curtain closing on the first day of Georgia Fashion Week, we sat down with Tinatin Magalashvili, the designer and driving force behind the event. From the week’s highlights to her latest collection and the possibilities for Armenian-Georgian fashion collaboration, Tinatin offered a glimpse into her vision for the industry.

Tinatin, please, share your emotions regarding the first day of Georgia Fashion Week.

The first impressions are always very special. I’m happy that this day ended beautifully. Later, of course, we’ll analyze what could be improved next season - mistakes are part of every process. What matters is that each season gets better and better.

Last season, people were telling us, “This season was incredibly interesting - what will you do next?” So, together with my team, we sat down and thought about how to make the next edition even better. Yesterday we heard the same words again - that this season was exceptional - and again, late at night, we were already brainstorming what to do next.

We constantly try to bring in fresh and creative moments. We use original Georgian music - every designer presents their show accompanied only by original compositions. We collaborate closely with Georgian musicians to receive permission and make the event more authentic.

Although this is already our sixth season, we stand firmly on our feet and know that the next one will be even stronger. We support young designers as well as those who have been in the industry for 20 or 30 years. We also invite international curators from France and Italy to join our shows.

We’re not just a project - we’ve built a platform of collaboration. We exchange designers with other fashion initiatives: we send Georgian designers abroad and host international ones here. This exchange system works very well. We also help designers get into showrooms and participate in various international events. I truly believe that through this, we are making a meaningful contribution to the development of Georgia’s fashion industry. And most importantly - our audience supports us.

We built this project during very challenging times, but the public has always stood by us, and we’re grateful that it’s all coming together so beautifully.

Recently, we had Yerevan Fashion Week in Armenia, and no Georgian designer took part in the event - why and how to make this possible?”

Yes, we’ve been discussing this recently - it’s true, no Georgian designer participated. I believe that’s our oversight, the organizers’ mistake. The problem is that we are not yet in contact with the organizers of Yerevan Fashion Week. But I will fix that on my side, and I hope our colleagues in Yerevan also be open to collaboration.

In October you presented your collection at Paris Fashion Days. What does the participation in such international platforms mean for the designers in our region?

First of all, it gives designers a story - when your story is long, you become more interesting for different projects. As soon as designers start sharing photos from shows, they begin receiving invitations from other platforms. When magazines like Vogue or Harper’s Bazaar write about you, it’s an incredible and necessary experience. Our goal is to help designers build that story together with us.


At Paris Fashion Days you showcased your own collection – it was the same one we saw at Georgia Fashion Week today, right?

Yes, but it’s a complimented version.

Tell us more about this collection. What was it about and what inspired it?

About a year ago, someone showed me a sketch I had drawn when I was five years old. It brought back memories of how, as a child, I loved creating little dresses for my dolls. I used to cut flowers from my mother’s curtains and grandmother’s blankets -  would sew little dresses with flowers for my dolls.

 Those flowers became the inspiration behind this collection.

The collection is called “Dreams Come True.” The main message is simple - love what you do, follow your dreams and keep moving toward your goals. Each petal in the collection was made by hand – everything in it is handcrafted. 

 It’s my favorite collection so far. I once had a collection called “Antoinette”, but after creating “Dreams Come True”, this one became my dearest. I will keep that childhood sketch forever.

In your opinion, what similarities and differences exist between Georgian and Armenian fashion scenes?

I’ve just spoken with several Armenian photographers who have been accredited for Georgia Fashion Week (we settled they’ll return next season too) - and we’ve discussed these differences.

I know you have a very strong project.

Georgia Fashion Week is a private initiative - we’re fully independent. Yerevan Fashion Week, on the other hand, is supported by the Government, European organizations etc, which is wonderful.

But independence also has its advantages - when you’re self-reliant, you don’t depend on anyone. For now, that’s our path, and we’ll see how it evolves in the future.

Unfortunately, I’m not yet personally acquainted with Armenian designers, but I will fix that. We often collaborate with “Kazakhstan Fashion Week” (we’re partners) and Georgian designers regularly present their collections there. Armenia is even closer, so it’s time to build that bridge. 

How can the representatives of the Armenian and Georgian fashion industries collaborate at this moment, when there is no official collaboration mechanism?

We’re a very open platform. Any Armenian designer who reaches out to us can share his/her portfolio and Look book, and we’ll gladly consider their application for participation in Georgia Fashion Week.

In fact, in the last and current seasons, we’ve already had Armenian models walking at our shows - so collaboration has already started, even though unofficially.

Designers are always welcome to contact us. We respond to everyone because we truly believe in supporting talented people. So yes - let them write to us! We’re open and ready to collaborate. 

Interview conducted by Mariam Nikoghosyan