At first glance, the showcase told me more stories and that made it even more attractive. It was not like most showcases, which carefully choose according to the designer’s advice a seasonal story in complementary colors or shades of the same range. The shop on the narrow street in Larnaca was screaming like stories on several voices … it was like a song.
I opened the door. I entered. I did a pirouette to identify, at a glance, as many products as possible. It was like in the pictures next to them, from magazines for schoolchildren, with „find the differences”.
-Hello, a thin voice was heard.
I sucked once more, and then I saw his head lifted from behind a large desk, loaded with the tip of things … of all kinds. I smiled at them and gladly accepted to explain as many things as I could about the products to which I was looking.
-These sandals are from a small village in Nicaragua. They are made of natural fabric and the models are unisex. The blue and green dresses are created by a French designer, and the materials are sourced from India. And this black blouse and sarafan are the work of a Greek creator, Retro Junkie is called his brand. We want all women to feel feminine and beautiful in the clothes we offer. That’s why the clothing items I chose to display in my store are all made of very good quality materials.
She conquered me from the first. Maybe because of the colors, maybe because of the serenity you could read on the face, I don’t know, but I listened with patience and interest to everything he chose to tell me. It was like she was presenting me her room.
Hara is 47 years old and is a mixture of three ethnicities. After some grandparents she is a Cypriot, after others she is Greek and other ancestors sent her Sicilian genes.
-All these things I have here, objects, photos …, help me, inspire me and I can create. Each of them represents a memory. Even though I’m not all happy, these memories are my life and I brought them to the store. I brought my world here because I spend the most time here, every day.
Hara, make sketches for the models of clothes she wants in the store and create accessories. Then he unzipped the inside of his forearm and showed me her tattoos.
– My brand is a neuron and was created to honor my mother’s life. He died in the hospital following an incorrectly dosed anesthetic that destroyed his nervous system. This sign, which I tattooed on my right hand, reminds me of the first day I lived without my mother. And the other tattoos are important to me. I live because of my parents and this is the red line, and the wolf is the fearless soul of my father who still lives. The drawings are made by me.
I tried on a blue dress and a black blouse with a different color sleeve. I like long dresses to the ground, with many colors, but every time I try one I realize very few occasions when I would wear them and I am satisfied with the image in the test booth. I bought my blouse and, while packing it, Hara, used another quiet moment for a new story.
– It’s a pity that you won’t be here in early April when the summer collection comes. In the first days, my friends come to visit the store and we spend, until late at night, in front of the showcases, with cocktails and lemonade. We also put on music and enjoy ourselves. This year I am happier. My ex-husband, whom I divorced four years ago, remarried. I was afraid no one would take him and I wouldn’t get rid of him. But I escaped.
We hugged and exchanged smiles. I left with a positive vibe and still remembered the last words spoken cheerfully and powerfully. He knew now that he had every chance to come to Santorini sometime, to fulfill his dream.
-Wait! Hara shouted after me and came over with a small box full of fragrant wax cubes. You put a candle under them and they melt. Thus, you will feel the smell of this store for more than a month… honey and almonds.
