The success story of Vakko from a small hat workshop to a giant brand
While it was a small hat workshop that Vitali Hakko opened in 1934 under the name "Şen Şapka"; the story of Vakko, a luxury ready-to-wear brand that now has hundreds of stores.
Vitali Hakko started at the age of 13 as an apprentice in a fabric shop. When the company he worked for went bankrupt, he opened a small hat workshop called "Şen Şapka" in 1934, which produced his own hats. With his older brother Albert Hakko becoming a partner in 1937, Vitali Hakko changed the name of the company to Vakko. He started to produce by combining Turkish silk and scarves that were fashionable at that time with the Turkish fashion world. Over time, Vakko turned to ready-made clothing for the production of hats, scarves, and more than printed fabrics.
Hakko opened a large 8 storey store in Beyoğlu, one of the most important places in Istanbul, with a cafe and a fashion gallery in 1962. The first Vakko Factory was built in a closed area of 40,000 m² in Merter in 1969. The factory, which houses paintings and sculptures of famous Turkish artists and also has an art gallery, showed the importance and support Vakko gives to art.
The popularity of the Vakko brand has increased with the advertising campaigns and fashion shows carried out throughout Turkey. In 1981, on the 100th birthday of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, a fashion and art show called "Anatolian Sun" was held, which brought together Anatolian cultures and the Western fashion concept. The show, which was also exhibited in Rome, Vienna, Brussels, Paris, and London outside Turkey, introduced Vakko in Europe as the representative of contemporary Turkish fashion.
Vakkorama, one of Turkey's first youth stores, opened in Istanbul in 1982. Vakko celebrated the 50th anniversary of its establishment by renewing its brand, and this was a turning point for the brand. The Vakko logo used today was designed by the famous British designer Sir Terence Conran.
In order to bring New York fashion to Istanbul, Vakkorama introduced a new team called V2K Designers in 2000 with the slogan "Two cities, one brand". V2K Designers, which has become the designers and brands of other fashion cities such as Paris, London and Milan in time, except New York, today met with different world brands under the same roof. And it has the distinction of being Turkey's first concept store.
Vakko Wedding was opened, offering the concept of wedding shopping and gathering the wedding dresses of world-famous designers under one roof in 2001. Vakko stepped abroad with its stores opened in Frankfurt and Hamburg. In 2004, world-famous designer Vera Wang's wedding dresses also participated in Vakko Wedding.
In 2006, the famous fashion designer Zac Posen met with Vakko and the creations he interpreted specially were born under the label of Zac Posen Vakko. In the same year, the world-famous top model Gisele Bündchen became the campaign face of Vakko. In 2010, the Vakko Fashion Center was opened in Nakkaştepe, designed by New York-based REX and consisting of many different areas and departments.
The first of the culture and art festival ISTANCOOL, which brings together many famous artists from different disciplines, was held in 2010. As guests, many important names from the world of fashion and art were hosted, especially the famous style icon Daphne Guinness, hat designer Philip Treacy, and pianist Michael Nyman. In 2011, Vakko Fashion Center was selected as the "Best Workspace of the Year" in the world by Wallpaper magazine and the international architecture platform ArchDaily.
The Accent of Fashion Exhibition of world-famous hat designer Stephen Jones was held at Vakko Fashion Center the same year. Vakko carried its design line and aesthetic point of view to interiors with its new brand Vakko Home. In Istancool2012, important names from the fashion and art world such as Carine Roitfeld, editor of French Vogue magazine, famous photographer Mario Sorrenti and artist Pınar Yolaçan were hosted.
In 2012, the Vitali Hakko Creative Industries Library was established within the Vakko Fashion Vakko Center. This is a very special place, which has the distinction of being the first library opened for Creative Industries in Turkey. It is also a library where resources published by the world's distinguished publishing houses can be found together in creative industries such as fashion, architecture, painting, design, cinema, and music. In the same year, Hartford and Riviera Maison brands were included in Vakko Holding.
Vakko Esmod Fashion School was established together with Esmod, the world's most established fashion school, in order to train the fashion professionals of the future in 2013. In the same year, Vakko Fashion Center Architizer A+ won the "World's Best Office Building" award. Vakko was founded in 2014, bringing together the famous brands of world beach fashion under one roof, Vakko Mare. In 2015, it was deemed worthy of the "Honorary Award" at the Design Awards, organized to reward excellence in design.
Today, Vakko, which has hundreds of stores, 3 of which are abroad, has succeeded in becoming a world-renowned Turkish company that produces and sells luxury ready to wear products with its design, aesthetic appearance and quality.