In this episode of Meet The Locals, we meet Dubai-based German fashion designer and entrepreneur Emilia Ohrtmann.
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00:00 [upbeat music]
00:02 - Even as a small child, I was cutting off my own jeans,
00:14 dyeing them, doing tie-dyes to my T-shirt.
00:17 So this interest in fashion and styling
00:19 has always been with me.
00:21 But then I couldn't draw, and I was told,
00:23 you need drawing for fashion design, so you can't study it.
00:26 Plus, you will never earn money with fashion design.
00:28 There were these other voices, so I studied business.
00:33 Eventually, I became a buyer for sportswear,
00:36 and that's where I found this passion
00:39 for the design part again.
00:40 I was taking evening classes and weekend classes.
00:43 I learned to draw, finally,
00:45 and then my husband got a job in Dubai.
00:49 So we moved to Dubai, and that was 10 years ago.
00:52 People were constantly moving here with new ideas.
00:56 I got approached for some new ideas.
00:59 I had three kids.
01:00 Honestly, I was pregnant, almost giving birth, working.
01:04 They were born, I was working again,
01:05 and I wanted time with them.
01:07 So I had to find a way to do both, be a mom and work.
01:11 And then I met so many women that they wanted to start here
01:14 and start a business.
01:14 I decided, okay, I'm gonna design their websites.
01:17 And that's what I actually did for five, six years.
01:19 And then COVID came.
01:21 Then I started writing a book for my children.
01:23 I wanted to give them something that they can read
01:25 just in case I'm not there anymore at some point.
01:29 I was writing, follow your dreams,
01:31 do what you're passionate about.
01:32 Don't listen to other people.
01:34 And that's when I sort of came down on me.
01:37 I've always known what I wanted to do, but I didn't do it.
01:40 So in the middle of lockdown,
01:41 I decided to start my own fashion line.
01:44 I also knew I wanted to do this confidence part within it.
01:48 So I realized I wanted to use sustainable fabrics,
01:51 organic cottons, fabrics that will feel beautiful
01:54 on your skin, that you feel good about.
01:56 Good about wearing them, but also good about buying them.
01:59 Also the whole minimalistic approach to the clothes,
02:02 because when you have something in your wardrobe
02:05 that you can pair with almost anything,
02:07 it gives you confidence because you know
02:09 whatever you pick, you will look great.
02:11 I see it in my customers now all the time.
02:13 You know, they try something on,
02:16 they look into the mirror and you see this,
02:18 like their eyes light up.
02:20 And I love that.
02:21 It's essentially that I do want to give confidence
02:23 to women.
02:25 When you feel more confident from the inside,
02:27 you can follow your own passions and actually go
02:30 for the big dreams and big goals that you have
02:33 that you might be putting off.
02:35 Dubai is in such an entrepreneurial state and spirit.
02:40 So many things are possible here.
02:42 I mean, anything is possible, really.
02:43 I want to grow my online business into the whole region.
02:46 And then I would love to have my own store
02:50 where I can style a woman every day.
02:52 (upbeat music)
02:54 (upbeat music)
02:57 [MUSIC PLAYING]