Owner: Vakko is Coming to a Living Room or Hotel Near You
January 17, 2003
Istanbul - Vakko, already a recognized designer name in Turkey, is planning an effort that second-generation owner Jeff Hakko hopes will make the brand known worldwide in home fashions and the hospitality business.
The company has done thousand-room projects and more projects are in the wings as hoteliers seek to make a luxury statement with Vakko's Ottoman Turkish style. ''It really depends on income from tourism,'' said Hakko. ''Sometimes, the hotel owner does a few floors at a time. Typically, refurbishment occurs every five to seven years,'' he said.
Vakko collections are typically in the upper ranges, $25 to $35 a meter in silk and viscose construction, except those reengineered for the hospitality trade. Vakko itself is a printer and converter with a weaving mill in Bursa. It has sold its goods to Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton and to the Pucic Palace in Croatia. A major boutique hotel owner is now after Vakko designs for a new project, he said.
Currently, Vakko is selling its home furnishings lines to Kravet, Anichini, Hemispheres Melrose and interiors by Royale in the U.S.A. Lebanon and Saudi Arabia are the largest customer base in the world and are doing well with Vakko collections, he said.
Hakko claims to do business at the $50 million level, including retail stores and distinct designer lines of clothing for men and women in this moderate Islamic country, but industry sources indicate the business is much larger. Vakko sold 20 percent of the company to the public in 1998. Currently home furnishings is five percent or $2.5 million in sales at the current time.
Hakko's father and uncle started the company. His family has been living in Turkey for 510 years.
''Turks are successful because of their amazing entrepreneurial spirit and their amazing ability to improvise under very difficult circumstances. Turks can go anywhere in the world and be successful at what they do.''
The company has done thousand-room projects and more projects are in the wings as hoteliers seek to make a luxury statement with Vakko's Ottoman Turkish style. ''It really depends on income from tourism,'' said Hakko. ''Sometimes, the hotel owner does a few floors at a time. Typically, refurbishment occurs every five to seven years,'' he said.
Vakko collections are typically in the upper ranges, $25 to $35 a meter in silk and viscose construction, except those reengineered for the hospitality trade. Vakko itself is a printer and converter with a weaving mill in Bursa. It has sold its goods to Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton and to the Pucic Palace in Croatia. A major boutique hotel owner is now after Vakko designs for a new project, he said.
Currently, Vakko is selling its home furnishings lines to Kravet, Anichini, Hemispheres Melrose and interiors by Royale in the U.S.A. Lebanon and Saudi Arabia are the largest customer base in the world and are doing well with Vakko collections, he said.
Hakko claims to do business at the $50 million level, including retail stores and distinct designer lines of clothing for men and women in this moderate Islamic country, but industry sources indicate the business is much larger. Vakko sold 20 percent of the company to the public in 1998. Currently home furnishings is five percent or $2.5 million in sales at the current time.
Hakko's father and uncle started the company. His family has been living in Turkey for 510 years.
''Turks are successful because of their amazing entrepreneurial spirit and their amazing ability to improvise under very difficult circumstances. Turks can go anywhere in the world and be successful at what they do.''
