Being young, succeeding in the world's fashion capital, designing for Prada and then returning to Montenegro... Miloš Milošević (33), a native of Cetinje who proved himself at a very young age in Milan by designing for some of the biggest brands, took that path.
The devil, perhaps, wears Prada, but ten years ago, a young man from Cetinje was helped by some good spirits, but, above all, talent and knowledge, to become the special designer of that world band, in the middle of Milan.
Miloš Milošević discovered the design at the age of 16.
At first he was interested in computers and did basic things like flyers and the like, then he got a scholarship to finish high school in Great Britain where he realized that design would be his future calling.
After high school, he returned to Montenegro for a short time to go to Milan in 2002, where he enrolled and completed studies in digital design.
"It was the desire to combine technology and traditional graphic design. There are people in my family who were engaged in printing, my grandfather was a typesetter. So it has its own thread that continued while on the other hand there was this great passion for technology. It was a good combination that resulted in this profession," Milošević told RSE.
In Milan, he entered the world of fashion, he worked in a small company that took photos from the famous fashion week in Milan, from various other fashion events and performances, and then sold those photos to world-famous fashion magazines such as "Vogue" and "Elle". and then came the crowning glory - working in the special department of Prada.
"It's the department for special projects and the Prada showcases that I defined with my team on a global level. At a certain point you realize that what comes out of that small office, from that small studio, will actually be in all the stores around the world tomorrow. That is that moment, an incredible moment when you see the real effects of your work," our interlocutor said honestly.
And while young and talented people were leaving Montenegro and the entire Balkans en masse, Miloš, at the peak of his international career, made an unusual decision to say the least - to return.
"At some point, already in 2006, with the independence of Montenegro and with some positive energy that existed, slowly somewhere and with some life paths with my current wife who had a similar path and professional development abroad, we came to a joint decision that time to continue our future in Montenegro. We decided to apply our international knowledge here and thus continue our professional path," states Miloš Milošević.
Aggravating circumstances in Montenegro
However, the beginning was anything but easy because, as Miloš says, clients in Montenegro did not recognize or appreciate design.
"Always somewhere, that work had to be attached to certain other things. For example, if we printed a flyer, then we had to include the design in the price of printing because that creative process, which is the basis of the complete story, was absolutely difficult to charge. That was in 2008 . was a terrible problem. The other aggravating thing at the beginning was that the experience I brought from Italy and that kind of portfolio with clients like Prada, Coca Cola, BMW and the like, was something that was not appreciated here. It was too much abstractly for Montenegrin clients and the first thing they would say was - it's ok what you did there, but what did you do here", says Miloš.
Things have changed for the better since then, and Miloš managed to turn his studio "Fleka" into a company that today employs 14 highly skilled and talented designers, all of whom are from Montenegro.
He doesn't regret coming back.
"Do I have any regrets? I've never, ever felt a moment of regret in the sense of what if. It never crossed my mind. This company that was a one man band in 2008 has grown into something much bigger," concludes Miloš Milošević.
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