154 IN STORE
Right Direction. Maat/Leipzig. Sabine Weber and her business partners have been running a store in Jena for the last ten years. They have now opened a new store, named Maat, in downtown Leipzig. Nevertheless, Weber does not only manage two stores, but she is (and remains) a teacher too. Text: Kay Alexander Plonka. Photos: Maat
Gives things a direction: Sabine Weber.
316 style in progress
In 2006, Sabine Weber and two partners opened the store Del Corazon in Weber’s hometown Jena. “Upon the advice of friends and fashion agencies, I started to scout for suitable premises for a second store in Dresden, Halle, and finally also in Leipzig. I fell in love with this location the moment I laid eyes on it, even though the premises are too large for my liking. But I knew straight away that I would either take this store, or none at all”, Sabine Weber recalls. The 40-year-old businesswoman is a free spirit. She doesn’t tread predefined paths and is always full of passion for her cause. “What you do with heart and what you have a talent for normally turns out to be successful. You may fall flat on your face a few times, but then you just get right back up again and carry on. Life is full of ups and downs; that’s what I try to get across to my students too”, she says. Weber teaches at a vocational college in Weimar from Monday to
Wednesday. She teaches aspiring educators in the subjects psychology, sociology, general didactics, and methodology. “It’s not just about knowledge transfer, but also about values and questions everyone should ask themselves at some point in life. What does happiness actually mean and what do I want to do with my life? I always tell my students to evaluate whether they have chosen the right profession. At the end of the day, we all spend eight hours per day at our respective jobs. That’s a huge chunk of our lives. That’s why it is so vital to enjoy what you’re doing”, she explains. Fashion and Art
It is quite clear that Sabine Weber enjoys what she does. She and her team specialise in combining fashion, art, and events. Maat, with its high ceilings and completely encompassed by shop windows, is predestined for this approach. Three swan sculptures by Hamburg-based artist Peer Oliver Nau, whose works can be purchased at Maat, are suspended in mid-air. Artists and photographers from the Leipzig area also showcase their work on a regular basis. In May, 150 guests witnessed a performance of the Leipzig Opera’s dance theatre series “Dance in the Houses” in the store. Twice a year the store is transformed into a catwalk in order to present the highlights of the newest collections. The store addresses its customers via Instagram, Facebook, newsletters, postcards, and personal invitations. Maat’s communication portfolio needs to be this broad seeing that both fashion-oriented students and affluent individuals in their mid-forties are among the store’s clientele. So who or what is Maat? She’s actually an ancient Egyptian goddess. “Maat stands for direction. Everything one does or takes in - be it good food or simply things that make people happy - needs to be reflected in one’s personality”, Sabine Weber explains. Things that make people happy are no longer merely suspended from hangers. The store utilises design classics as eye-catchers. It also showcases furniture by Candy Company and Normann Copenhagen,
which is, of course, for sale. The minimalist, white product displays present bags, candles, jewellery, scarves, sunglasses by Komono, and books published by Taschen Verlag. In addition, Maat boasts a compact beauty segment including fragrances by Saskia Diez, Cloon Keen Atelier, and Escentric Molecules, creams and lotions by Dr. Jacksons, and tea by Teatox. “Only recently, we started co-operating with Oliver Viehweg, a Leipzig-based designer and tailor, and Luxaa, an organic label from Halle. It is important to us that Maat not only stocks designers from Scandinavia and Berlin, but also showcases labels from the region and highlight good alternatives to the mainstream”, Sabine Weber closes.
Maat Store Burgstrasse 9 04109 Leipzig/Germany www.maat-fashion.com Owner: Sabine Weber Store manager: Theresa Müller Employees: 2 full-time and 3 temps Opening: September 2014 Sales area: 300sqm Brands: Avelon, Baum & Pferdegarten, Carin Wester, Cheap Monday, Dr. Martens, Lala Berlin, Lika Mimika, Royal Republiq, Wood Wood Accessories brands: Escentric Molecules, Dr. Jacksons, Our Vodka Berlin, Pb0110, Sabrina Dehoff, Taschen Verlag, Vibe Harslof