Why Olga Karput Is the Master of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia Street Style

Change is in the air at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia. It may only be recently that the tide of the Russian street style scene has turned against the monogram-ridden foreign label–strewn wives of the oligarchs, but it’s designers like Tigran Avetisyan and **Andrey Artyomov **s Walk of Shame (both Russian natives) who are the ones Moscowvite cool kids flock to in droves. And Russia s recent embrace of homegrown fashion can be partially credited to Olga Karput, the owner of Moscow-based concept store Kuznetsky Most 20, which puts a big emphasis on in-demand local designers. "In 2008, in the middle of another financial crisis, we sat together with a tiny team of four people and decided to make a fashion revolution in Russia," says Karput. "We lack production facilities, government support, good education, and industry professionals, but with such names as Gosha Rubchinskiy, Nina Donis, Vika Gazinskaya, Tigran Avetisyan, I m sure we will continue to develop." And Karput is true to her word. Though she notes a deep love for Simone Rocha, Karput is her store’s own best advertisement: You can often spot her in an East-meets-West mix of Walk of Shame jackets with Raf Simons sneakers, or a Marques Almeida jacket with a Gosha Rubchinskiy shirt. And after all, what better way to show support for your nation s young designers than to wear them on your sleeve? Here, see what the burgeoning street style patriot is wearing to Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia.