SUCCESS STORY

Anna Okurowska: The Courage to Become

by Guillaume Jean Lefebvre

9. Your work exists at the intersection of fashion, art, music, architecture, nature, and personal experience. If you had to describe the emotional world of ANNA OKARIA without using the words “fashion” or “luxury,” what would you want someone to feel when they encounter one of your creations?

I would want them to feel something before they even begin analysing what they see.

Perhaps curiosity first. Then emotion.

There is a world I try to create around ANNA OKARIA — a world of contrast, sensuality, strength, vulnerability, beauty and a certain mystery. Music, architecture, movement, nature and memory all enter that world.

But above everything, I would want someone to feel presence.

That is a word that has become very important to me.

There is something extraordinary about a woman who enters a room without needing to prove anything. She simply knows who she is.

If one of my creations can evoke even a little of that feeling, then it has achieved what I wanted it to do.

10. Your philosophy is captured in the words, “Fashion should never transform a woman into someone else. It should reveal who she has always been.” As ANNA OKARIA continues to grow internationally, what do you hope women will ultimately discover about themselves through your work — and what do you hope your fashion house will stand for many years from now?

I hope women discover that they don't need to become somebody else in order to be extraordinary.

We live in a world that constantly tells women how they should look, how they should behave and even who they should become. I would like ANNA OKARIA to communicate something very different: that individuality is not something to correct. It is something to celebrate.

When a woman wears one of my creations, I want her to feel more herself, not more like an image imposed upon her.

Perhaps this comes from my own journey. I spent many years becoming what life expected me to be before understanding that the greatest freedom was simply allowing myself to be.

Many years from now, I hope ANNA OKARIA will stand for authenticity, courage, craftsmanship and artistic independence. I hope it will remain a fashion house where garments carry stories and where beauty is never separated from meaning.

And if there is one idea I would like the house to leave behind, it is very simple:

Own your voice. Own your style.

Because ultimately, the most powerful thing a woman can wear is her own identity.

Founder and Creative Director of ANNA OKARIA, Anna Okurowska has transformed a successful international corporate career into a fashion journey built on authenticity, craftsmanship, and artistic freedom.
For Anna Okurowska, fashion was never something she suddenly discovered. It was a passion that had been present since childhood, long before she imagined making it her profession. After nearly two decades in the corporate world and an MBA in finance, she had built a successful international career. Yet at 46, she made the courageous decision to leave that world and finally pursue the creative calling she had carried for years.

“I have always been a designer,” she says. “Fashion wasn't something I discovered at 46 — it was something I finally allowed myself to pursue professionally.”

That decision became the foundation of ANNA OKARIA, the fashion house she founded and where she serves as Creative Director. The name reflects her philosophy: Anna comes from the Hebrew Hannah, meaning grace, while OKARIA, derived from her surname Okurowska, has evolved into a symbol of authenticity, transformation, and artistic freedom.
At the heart of her work is a simple belief: authenticity is one of the greatest forms of luxury. Rather than following trends or creating garments simply to attract attention, Okurowska seeks to design pieces that reveal the individuality of the woman wearing them. Her work is guided by integrity, craftsmanship, purpose, and the belief that beauty can also be found in imperfection.
Her corporate background remains an important part of her creative journey. The years she spent working internationally taught her discipline, leadership, resilience, and determination. Those experiences now help her build ANNA OKARIA with the same intention and sense of excellence. For Okurowska, becoming a designer was not a rejection of her past, but an evolution of everything she had learned.
Her journey has not been without uncertainty. Starting a new career at 46 required courage, and an early collaboration with a tailoring partner eventually ended when their creative philosophies proved incompatible. Rather than compromise her vision, she chose to walk away. The experience reinforced her belief that protecting one's creative identity is sometimes essential to growth.

Her grandmother was another important influence, introducing her to the beauty and meaning of handmade craftsmanship. Today, Okurowska's inspiration comes from many places: nature, art, architecture, music, different cultures, and the women for whom she designs. Having lived in Poland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and South Africa, and travelled extensively, she has developed a broad appreciation for different forms of beauty and creative expression.
One of the most meaningful moments of her career was creating her first fashion show. She designed all 25 garments, as well as the sequence, music, storytelling, and emotional progression of the presentation. The show became a reflection of her own journey through countries, cultures, and experiences. It confirmed that fashion was more than clothing for her — it was a form of storytelling.
Her journey is now expanding to New York, where ANNA OKARIA will be present in Soho. Okurowska has signed a membership agreement with Flying Solo, marking an important milestone for the brand and another significant step in its international development.
Art and music continue to play an important role in her creative process. She draws inspiration from Art Deco, architecture, interior design, museums, and galleries, while music from Polish artists such as Frédéric Chopin and Hania Rani often helps establish the emotional atmosphere behind a collection.
Today, Okurowska defines success differently than she once did. Recognition and professional achievement remain meaningful, but her greatest measure of success is creating work that genuinely reflects who she is. If a woman wearing one of her designs feels more confident, authentic, or connected to herself, she considers that a meaningful achievement.
Her philosophy can ultimately be summed up in the one word she chooses for her legacy: Authentic.
She hopes ANNA OKARIA will become known not simply for beautiful clothing, but for craftsmanship, timeless artistry, courage, and transformation. Her story is a reminder that there is no perfect age to follow a dream — and that sometimes the greatest act of success is simply having the courage to become fully yourself.

1. Your journey from the corporate world to couture was not simply a career change, but what you describe as finally “becoming who you were always meant to be.” Looking back, what was happening internally that made you realize you could no longer ignore that part of yourself?

Fashion was never something I suddenly discovered. Creativity had always been part of me, but for many years I followed a very different path. I studied finance and spent sixteen years in the corporate world. It gave me discipline, resilience and a strong sense of responsibility, but there was always another part of me that needed expression.

At 46, I reached a point where I could no longer ignore it. I had built a successful professional life, yet internally I felt that I was living only one dimension of myself. Leaving that world was frightening because I was walking away from certainty, but it was also incredibly liberating.

A collaboration with a tailor initially opened the door to fashion for me. Although that partnership eventually ended because our visions were different, something important had already happened: the creative part of me had awakened completely. I knew I could not simply close that door and return to the life I had known before.

That was when I understood that reinvention is not about becoming someone new. Sometimes it is about finally having the courage to become who you have always been.

2. In early 2026, you evolved from DirectOn by Anna K. to ANNA OKARIA. What did that transformation mean to you personally and creatively, and what does the journey from “becoming” to “being” represent within the identity of the fashion house?

DirectOn by Anna K. represented the beginning. It was the moment when I gave myself permission to enter the world of fashion and begin discovering my own creative language.

But as my work evolved, I realized that the brand needed to become more personal. ANNA OKARIA is derived from my own name, and that was important to me. I no longer wanted to stand behind a concept. I wanted to put my identity behind the work.

The transition also mirrored my own journey from Becoming to Being. Becoming is movement: searching, questioning, experimenting, discovering yourself. Being is different. It is the moment when you stop asking for permission and begin standing fully within your own identity.

That philosophy became much larger than the name of a collection. It became the foundation of ANNA OKARIA.

For me, the fashion house is ultimately about that moment of recognition: not becoming someone else, but having the courage to be who you already are.

Creative Director/Designer: Anna Okurowska - @annaokaria
Photographers:
Light Art Photography - @l.a.graphy
George Qua-Enoo - @georgeq
Francesco Busco - @francescobusco_fashion_photo
Dzmitry Masherau - @landdima

Interview

3. Your collections are built around themes such as Art of Becoming, Being, Between Shadow and Light, and From Becoming to Being. Rather than designing around seasons and trends, you describe each body of work as a chapter in an ongoing artistic narrative. What story are you ultimately trying to tell through this journey?

I am telling the story of identity.

My collections are deeply connected to transformation, but not transformation in the sense of changing yourself to satisfy the expectations of the world. I am interested in the much more intimate journey of discovering what remains when those expectations disappear.

That is why I think in chapters rather than seasons. Art of Becoming, Being, Between Shadow and Light and From Becoming to Being are different emotional states within the same journey.

There is vulnerability, uncertainty, strength, contradiction, acceptance and eventually presence.

And perhaps that is why I am less interested in trends. Trends tell us what we should want at a particular moment. I am much more interested in what remains timeless: identity, emotion, memory and the desire to express who we truly are.

4. Lace has become one of your signature materials, yet you see it as much more than a beautiful textile. You associate it with heritage, vulnerability, resilience, strength, and softness. What is it about lace that allows you to express these seemingly contradictory qualities of femininity?

Lace is the soul of much of my work because it contains contradictions, just as femininity does.

It can appear fragile, yet structurally it can be remarkably strong. It reveals and conceals simultaneously. It can be romantic and sensual, traditional and contemporary, vulnerable and powerful.

There is also something very personal about it for me. Lace connects me with European heritage and with memories of craftsmanship, patience and things created slowly by hand. At the same time, when I place it against the body in a contemporary silhouette, it becomes something completely different.

I love that tension.

I don't believe femininity needs to choose between softness and strength. A woman can be delicate and powerful at the same time. Lace allows me to express precisely that complexity.

5. You have lived in Poland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and South Africa, while travelling extensively around the world. How have these different cultures, landscapes, architectural traditions, and ways of seeing beauty shaped the visual language of ANNA OKARIA?

Every place I have lived has left something in me.

Poland gave me my roots — heritage, craftsmanship, history and a certain emotional sensitivity. The Netherlands introduced me to a different relationship with design and simplicity. Switzerland strengthened my appreciation for precision, restraint and quality.

And then came South Africa.

South Africa changed my relationship with colour, nature, texture and freedom. Johannesburg in particular has an extraordinary creative energy. There is beauty here that is not always polished or predictable, and I find that incredibly inspiring. Africa taught me to see beauty differently — to appreciate contrast, imperfection, strength and individuality.

Architecture also influences me deeply. I can be inspired by the proportions of a building, a staircase, a doorway, the geometry of a façade or simply by the way light enters a room. The same is true of nature, music and art.

I don't consciously decide that one garment should be Polish, European or African. These influences have become part of how I see.

ANNA OKARIA exists somewhere between these worlds — rooted in European heritage, but transformed by the beauty, energy and freedom I discovered in Africa.

6. In 2026, you presented your debut international runway collection in Anagni, Italy. What did that moment represent for you after the years of preparation, and was there a particular emotion or realization you experienced when you finally saw your vision come to life on an international runway?

Anagni was very emotional for me because it made something that had existed largely in my imagination suddenly feel real on an international stage.

The collection was called From Becoming to Being, which made the moment particularly symbolic. In many ways, I was experiencing exactly what the collection represented.

Watching the models walk in my creations, in Italy, I felt proud, of course, but there was something quieter beneath that pride. It was a sense of recognition.

I thought: This is where I am supposed to be.

Not because I felt I had arrived at a final destination — I don't think there is one — but because I could finally see that trusting my intuition and leaving behind a completely different life had led me somewhere authentic.

For me, Anagni was not simply an international runway debut. It was confirmation that the journey I had chosen was truly mine.

7. You describe your garments as wearable works of art designed not simply to dress a woman, but to reflect her story, strength, and individuality. When you begin creating a piece, do you imagine the woman who will wear it first, or does the garment itself reveal the woman it is meant for?

Usually, I begin with an emotion, an image or an idea rather than a specific woman.

Sometimes I see the entire garment in my mind almost immediately. Other times, it begins with a fabric, a texture or a detail and slowly reveals itself.

But the woman is always present in some way.

I don't imagine her age, profession or even necessarily her appearance. I imagine her presence. She knows herself. She doesn't need clothes to disguise her or turn her into somebody else.

That is very important to me.

I want the garment and the woman to meet somewhere in the middle. The piece has its own character, but when the right woman wears it, something changes. Her personality completes it.

That is when fashion becomes much more interesting to me than simply clothing.

8. Your philosophy suggests that true luxury is not excess but authenticity, craftsmanship, and meaning. In an industry increasingly influenced by speed, mass production, and constantly changing trends, what do you believe luxury should mean today — and what should it never become?

For me, luxury is increasingly about rarity — not necessarily rarity created by price, but by individuality, craftsmanship and intention.

It is knowing that something has been considered rather than simply produced. It is the quality of the fabric, the construction, the hand of the maker, the time behind a piece and the emotional connection someone develops with it.

I believe the future of luxury should become more personal, not more excessive.

A beautiful garment should have enough character to remain meaningful beyond one season. Ideally, a woman should want to keep it because it has become part of her story.

Luxury should never become a race for consumption or a logo that replaces individuality. The moment luxury becomes only about proving status, I think it loses something essential.

To me, the greatest luxury is owning something that feels unmistakably yours.