Walking from the Western Station to

Oktogon you could easily pass by the

small, bright shop of the extreme

designer Zoltn Herczeg without noticing it.

The well-designed shop, in a courtyard on

Terz krt, sells flamboyant clothing and

accessories, mainly for men. The Budapest Times

spoke to Herczeg, a lover of extravagant

eyeglasses, about the past and present, and why

his designs sell better abroad.

On entering the shop there can be no mistake

about who the customer is and who the

designer is. Herczeg is wearing glasses with glit-

tering frames that could easily hold their own in

Elton Johns collection, a well-fitted, striped

shirt, worn jeans and red cowboy half-boots.

Once the customers have left, Herczeg tells us

that even as a child he always loved painting,

drawing and designing.

My parents couldnt get me away from my

table and pens and out of the house, he laughs.

Herczeg also took up sculpture and writing.

Ive always had an artistic vein, he says.

At the end of the 1980s a mixture of hip hop

and rock flooded Hungary but there was no

clothing to match. My brothers girlfriend was

a seamstress; I took my designs for Bermuda

shorts to her and she made them. Later

Herczeg designed trousers and shirts, and by

the time he graduated from university virtually

his whole wardrobe was self-designed.

Economics first

He studied economics at Corvinus University

in Budapest rather than training as a designer.

The reason was that his marks at an economics

secondary school were too good, he says. I

didnt have a clear idea about what I wanted to

do. My teachers and parents assumed that I

would go to Corvinus, and I enjoyed it there.

After graduating, however, he turned his atten-

tion to fashion. His parents were sceptical. But

theyve always been behind me. Now that busi-

ness is good and Im making money from it,

theyre very proud of me, the self-made

designer says.

From the street to the internet

Herczeg started out in 1996 with just HUF

30,000 (200 USD at the time) that he had

borrowed from a friend, his designs in felt-tip

pen and the help of a seamstress. He began by

selling womens trousers on the street and in

student halls of residence to acquaintances and

strangers alike, carrying them around through

the city on the bus and metro. A year later he

had opened his first shop, which was one court-

yard away from his current shop and even

smaller.

Herczeg has since opened a webshop, which

attracts customers from far and wide, including

Slovakia and Romania as well as the whole of

Hungary. He has a Facebook page because you

have to get with the times and use all the possi-

bilities available. His latest project is the label

American Badass, which is sold in the USA.

The film star Michael Madsen (Reservoir

Dogs, Donnie Brasco, Thelma and Louise) came

into my shop one day, took a liking to my

designs and asked me there and then if I would

like to work with him. Unsurprisingly Herczeg

took him up on the offer and is now designing

under two labels, his original Herczeg label

and the joint American Badass label.

Not for the faint-hearted

Autodidact Herczeg designs in his head

first and then puts his ideas down on paper.

Sometimes hes inspired to make an item by a

nice material but sometimes it happens in

reverse.

If you go through life with your eyes wide

open then ideas just come to you. I was in

London and Paris recently and I came back

with so much energy, inspiration and fabrics

that it will take some time to absorb it all.

Herczeg describes his style as classic: his

trousers have two legs and shirts have two

sleeves, he says. The clothes, however, are

bright and highly individual thanks to the use

of appliqu, patterns and details such as two-

tone buttons and shirt pockets. The overall

impression is what counts.

The best word for it is actually badass,

says the designer. His clothes are slightly

exhibitionist, out-there, bold and sexy. They

are worn by people who are open to the world,

feel at home in it and want to live their lives

on their own terms, he explains.

Customers include foreigners who have

discovered the shop and often buy a lot in one

go, including Herczegs most outlandish

designs. Hungarians are more reserved. They

tend to buy one or two things, and these tend

to be the safer options. Herczeg chalks that up

to Hungarys backwardness when it comes to

fashion: Because of the years of communism

people are less open and not so daring. They

care a lot what other people think and they

dont have the necessary spare cash.

Shoe line

About 90 per cent of the clothes in the shop

are for men. He understands men, which is

why he mainly designs for them. However,

Herczeg also works together with large inter-

national companies, for which he designs

hostess outfits. Given that hostesses tend to be

women, it occurs to him that around half of

his designs are in fact for women.

His new shoe line, however, consisting of

riding boots, cowboy half-boots and loafers, is

targeted at men. Herczeg won a design

competition for the trainers that he brought

out last year in collaboration with Puma, and

of which he received 30 limited-edition pairs.

Different mentality

He takes a critical view of the economic

situation: A lot of Hungarians are struggling

just to get by. They work to the grindstone

and theyre unhappy. That reduces their

purchasing power but also their desire and

courage to stand out from the crowd. People

in the West have a different mentality. Theyre

happy and have a healthy outlook; thats why

theyre more daring.

Despite such observations, Herczeg says he

doesnt want to leave. Instead he wants to help

improve life in Hungary, a country that he

believes has great potential for development if

only the political climate were different. He

hopes his extravagant, high-quality clothes

will make the world more colourful because, as

he puts it, my job is to sell happiness and

joy.

Ines Gruber

THE BUDAPEST TIMES

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114410 JUNE 16 JUNE 2011

Fashion for the flamboyant man

Designers in Hungary Part XIV: Zoltn Herczeg & his labels Herczeg & American Badass

Z oltn Herczeg has workedas a clothes designersince he graduated fromCorvinus University 15 years ago.After opening his shop in 1997 hereceived orders from variousHungarian world-music bands,including Back II Black, Hooligansand Romantic. Later several inter-national companies put him in

charge of designing outfits fortheir hostesses. He has appearedon television as a jury member,presented his collections on thecatwalks of Madrid and in 2005was the Fashion AwardsHungary young designer of theyear. In 2008 he made it into theHungarian Whos Who yearbook.Since 2009 he has been collabo-

rating with American film starMichael Madsen on a new label,and in 2010 he brought out hisown trainers in collaboration withPuma.

Zoltn HerczegDistrict VI, Terz krt 35Tel.: +36209730443www.herczegzoltan.hu

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