SAGAN Vienna: A International Viennese wave

Familiar done differently. Thus the slogan of Sagan Vienna goes, an emerging accessories brand based in the Austrian capital. 

A reflection of the increasing diversity of (Central) Europe, the two founders of the brand are part of an influx of international students. Tanja Bradaric and Taro Ohmae, of Croatian and Japanese heritage, respectively, attended the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, where they studied fashion under the Belgian designer talents Raf Simons and Veronique Branquinho. 

Not too long after cutting their teeth at the houses of Chloé and Balenciaga in Paris, the duo founded their own label of ready-to-wear and accessories in 2012.

Their bags, especially, started making waves. Focusing on solely leather goods and homewares at the moment, Sagan Vienna has found its niche. Working together provides a unique dynamic and indispensable support, they say, and pushes them to always do better. 

Their aesthetic can be characterized as classic with an avant-garde angle, and their sensibility values quality very highly: all pieces are handcrafted but with an eye for technical innovation and utilizing solid materials that last. 

Case in point: Sagan Vienna’s leather bags that incorporate traditional Viennese canework. Minimal and modernist-inspired in their design, these bags look towards Marcel Breuer’s S32, tubular steel cantilever Thonet chair with its recognizable woven cane pattern for an eye-catching detail that’s at once sturdy and precious. 

The wickerwork weave, an instantly recognizable feature of Thonet’s many chair designs, has become synonymous with Viennese coffee-house culture. Sagan Vienna updates this design element on its bags with other Viennese strongholds for each collection. For 2018, pieces of horn are assembled on bags, wallets and other leather goods, referencing Vienna’s horn manufacturing industry which has been present there from 1862. 

So what better accoutrement to explore Vienna with than a Sagan Vienna piece? When staying at Hotel Altstadt Vienna, our eclectically furnished partner in the hip Spittelberg neighborhood, pay the Sagan Vienna showroom a visit (by appointment only), it’s just a 7-min walk away, and/or:

Imperial Shop Vienna: Heldenplatz, 1010 Vienna, entry Weltmuseum Wien 

Österreichische Werkstätten: Kärntner Str. 6, 1010 Vienna

With their wide range of small leather goods, bucket bags, shopper bags, clutches, and more, you’ll find your perfect piece that will make you blend right in.