Viktor Anisimov, one of Ukraine’s top fashion designers, first worked with the future president of Ukraine about 20 years ago. That was when Volodymyr Zelenskyy was part of a comedy troupe whose members all dressed in T-shirts and leather pants.
Anisimov coaxed them into trying classic suits.
So in January, when Zelenskyy’s wife wanted a new look for her husband, and her office reached out to Anisimov, he had a familiar thought. Suits.
It didn’t matter to him that Zelenskyy had repeatedly said he would not wear a suit until the war with Russia was over and that he had worn only military garb in solidarity with his troops.
Nor did it matter that the designer knew Zelenskyy did not care about clothing.
“He dressed for comfort,” Anisimov said in an interview in his workshop, surrounded by clothing racks.
But, he added, “They thought he might listen to me.”
Anisimov, 61, never expected to end up in the fashion world. He had planned to be a military man for the Soviet Union.
But these days, he not only has his own successful design business, but he is also the fashion consultant for Zelenskyy, fielding questions about what Ukraine’s leader planned to wear for his meeting with US president Donald Trump last week (Oct 17).
His answer: He just designs the clothes. The president picks what he wants to wear.
On Friday (Oct 17), Zelenskyy showed up at the White House in an outfit Anisimov had designed in the last few weeks.
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