Werbung | Verlinkung Dora, you are the owner of an incredible vintage store called Grus Grus in Berlin-Wedding. Besides your passion for vintage you are an artist and also a coffee pro. So best from all worlds came together here. 

Why did you decide to open a vintage shop and how did you choose the wild Wedding to open your store?

Thanks so much for your nice words. For me it was the most obvious thing to open my shop in Wedding, as Wedding became my home in Berlin years ago. I opened Grus Grus in the Kiez I live in. I wanted to partake in the neighbourhood’s life, by opening a place I was missing from here.

I have been only consciously buying second hand clothing for many years now. First of all, I find pleasure in thrifting and finding beautiful pieces of clothing in places where others just see piles of used fabrics. But more importantly, when I got acquainted with the behind the scenes of the fast fashion industry, I knew that I have to find different ways to be able to keep up with my desire to express myself also with what I am wearing. It got very important to me not to directly support any corporations that run sweatshops on the other side of the planet. The fast fashion industry is producing incredible amounts of waste and is very unsustainable. Some research already suggests that the resale market is becoming bigger then fast fashion.We also shouldn’t forget about the fact that fashion trends come and go, but there is not a lot of new things under the sun. Fashion is also repeating itself and builds trends on previous decades. You can very easily reproduce these now fashionable outfits with apparel that were actually produced during those decades. So my passion for thrifting and my desire to make a change motivated me to open a vintage store. Adding specialty coffee to the concept was also self-explanatory as I worked for many years for Bonanza Coffee, a Berlin based specialty coffee and roastery.

How did you find this special location?

Emily, owner of the neighbouring book store TOTEM mentioned to me that the location next door will be open to rent, and she linked me to my landlord. I fell in love with the space right away, and signed the lease within a few days. From then on everything went fast. Grus Grus is located in an otherwise quiet street of Wedding, der Schererstrasse. But just around the corner is Totem, The Silent Green, Mirage, and the Michelin star restaurant Ernst. A lot is happening in this Kiez, quietly but surely. Uferstrasse with my favourite spots is also within a nice walking distance.

How do you make your selection of items for GRUS GRUS?

I pick pieces that I personally find interesting and that immediately speak to me. I buy and select clothing that were preferably made before the 2000s, and tend to avoid contemporary fast fashion labels per se. I have a focus on natural fabrics and timeless classic design - regardless of labels. I like to have basic pieces that are easy to combine and style as well as statement pieces that are definitely to be noticed. I enjoy styling the clothes I pick for the shop, and lay out outfits that I later post on Instagram.

How vintage is your own wardrobe?

I consciously only buy second-hand for many years now. I do not own a big wardrobe, I like to have a smaller selection, it makes dressing up in the morning a lot easier. But since I pick the clothes for the shop, I also somehow feel like the GRUS GRUS collection is my extended wardrobe.

Are you a hunter or collector? Do you have a special item on your wishlist?

I’m totally a hunter. I hunted almost everything in the shop and in our home as well. It’s some kind of a passion for me. And it’s also my job now, by the way. (Laughs)

The store is such a dream / wish coming true, that I still need some time to come up with new wishes.

What are your plans for the future of GRUS GRUS?

I hosted pop-up event and a concert in the past, and was going to host more exhibitions. But I am keen on organising a round table discussion around sustainable fashion. Buying vintage and second-hand and avoiding fast fashion in any of it’s forms is a very simple way to help Mother Earth. I also encourage my audiences to reduce, reuse and not to back off some small wears and signs of usage but to fix and repair before throwing away. Shopping sustainably and creating an ethical wardrobe is easier than we think. I’d love to invite circles of people to talk about this topic, and spread the message as far as possible.

All paintings in your store are made by you. Tell us a little bit about you as an artist!

I consider myself an outsider artist - not in the strict sense of the term, but as someone who wishes to democratise art and who is not part of the established and institutionalised art world. With my recent work I try to depict and contemplate the elemental beauty of life in its simplest form and appearance. In my paintings this often times is represented by plants and nature and their merging with a human form - where the body becomes one with everything else surrounding it.

Are all paintings for sale?

Yes they are. You can inquire about details in store, or by email or direct message on Instagram.

Pictures from Doras Home.

Interview & Fotos: Jules Villbrandt