A matryoshka doll, a Babushka doll or a Russian nested doll, is a set of dolls of decreasing sizes placed one inside the other. "Matryoshka" is a derivative of the Russian female first name "Matryona", which was a very popular name among peasants in old Russia.I first thought of the idea when I came accross a set of mugs with the design on http://www.dotmaison.com/. I loved the doll features (e.g big eyes, long eyelashes, rosy cheeks), bright clothing and also the russian names for the dolls (Babushka and Matryoshka). I felt it would be a great brand symbol of fun and femininity.
During my research period, I have only come accross home ware or broaches and other accessories adorning russian dolls - luckily no clothing brands. I love the idea of the dolls stacking and fitting inside one another and hope to incorporate this into my brand some how. Possible ideas so far focus on clothing and layering. For instance, my brand could consist of whole oufits for sale which 'fit together' such as layered dresses with matching cardi's and petticoats. The emphasis would be on value for money - being able to mix / match items with other outfits, and it would provide the buyer with 'a look' instantly as opposed to trekking around store to store trying to find matching items.
With the economic crisis and consumer spending in decline, there are already shops around such as Primark and New Look which offer very cheap clothing. However, dresses and one piece investments from these stores are hard to customise and lack originality - I am sure there are other girls out there who have seen someone else in their Primark dress on a night out! Hardly a unique outfit....Although this is my first idea, I may try to think of a fashion brand not associated with clothing as I feel the clothing sector is fiercely competitive. However, I still hope to use the russian doll as a brand logo and possible name idea.
