Whenever I’m in Croatia I always try to support Croatian businesses by buying only Croatian made (food for example is quite easy by simply going to the local farmers market and buying directly from producers, but simply making the choice to shop at Konzum rather than Kaufland or Spar or going.) Am I an economic nationalist? Unabashedly so. In a small country where the closure of a factory can have devastating effects for that city, I try to do my part.
Supporting the local economy and keeping poverty at bay isn’t the only benefit. The design, quality and innovation of the products can’t be beat! So here is a list of some local producers and artisans that ship worldwide (or you can pick up on your next trip.)
Home decor
Marinksi Heartmades
There are a lot of fantastic handmade ceramic producers based in Croatia. But honestly, Marina’s ceramics are for me the best of the best. From her coffee cups to Christmas ornaments to vases.
View them on Instagram
Dunja Ignis
This is another producer of handmade ceramics, with fun and beautiful swimming/sea designs that can be purchased through Etsy. Her designs remind me of my summers on the Croatian coast.
View them on Instagram
La Krpa
Handmade home linens artisan based in Zagreb, with beautiful “krpa” or tea towels, table runners, napkins, etc using a block print technique (which means anything can be customised with multiple motifs). I particularly love the traditional “licitar” ones, which I bought along with the monstera.
View them on Instagram (where you can also order via DM)
Pijat
A Solin-based artisan crafting beautiful handmade wooden bowls and plates. I sourced a bowl for my husband’s office (to hold little chocolates or candies for guests) and ended up ordering this large, round board for myself.
View them on Instagram (where you can also order them via DM)
Pčelarko Omoti
Ecological and biodegradable reusable bees wax wraps to cover your food. All in cute designs.
ListLiving
A Zagreb-based textile company that has gorgeous pillow cases, storage bags, kitchen linens as well as prints with a botanical and minimalist aesthetic. The quality is wonderful, which is also why their things are on my list of fail-proof gifting options. I love the pillow cases and tableware, but the cloth storage bags are really quite great. I bought one for my kitchen where it stores, or rather hides, our vitamins and can now see possibilities for use in other areas of the house as well, like storage in the bathroom.
Visit them on Instagram, where you can get a link to their website as well as Etsy shop
Beauty
Silvan
I picked these up to give as presents for friends this past summer due to the interesting designs on the packaging (inspired by the prehistoric Illyrian tribal)–and was so glad I decided to keep some for my own.
https://silvan.hr/
Sapunoteka
I’ve been buying these eco products for a while, particularly the creams since they use cold-pressed oils and a preservative only approved for organic products. They have everything from bar soaps to hand and face creams to scrubs.
Visit their website (in Croatian, but ships throughout Europe)
Clothing & Accessories
Borovo
Borovo is a Vukovar-based shoe company which sells super cool sneakers under its startas brand. A few years ago they even made it into American Vogue and have since exploded–even finding their way into some curated boutiques here in Brussels. They are by far my favorite and most fun sneakers.
lega-lega
lega-lega is an Osijek-based clothing brand with cool, alternative takes on typical Osijek/Slavonian slang and motifs. Lega actually means “buddy” or “bro” but in a cool way. It’s a cool way of referring to a friend, let’s leave it like that. Since they have shops in Dubrovnik and Zagreb, they also have designs specific to those two cities as well. I think the only t-shirts I now own are from here.
Mustra
A cool Croatian clothing brand based in Zagreb with more sporty, alternative designs. I love the fact that the clothing is hand sewn and produced in Croatia, but also that it features phrases in Croatian (in addition to English) on some of the designs.
BB Shoes
I really can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked past this shop in Zagreb and thought, wow this place is amazing. The quality looks amazing, they are handmade and designs great! Next time we go to Zagreb I will definitely be getting my husband a pair.
Visit their instagram page to see their classic and quirky designs.
Ulični Ormar
Ulični Ormar is a fantastic vintage, second-hand shop in the centre of Zagreb not far from Zrinjevski and some of my favorite coffee shops. The place is super cute but best (well depending on how much you budgeted for the day!) the clothes are in fantastic condition and the shop well curated. So much so that I’ve even felt confident enough to order things from abroad without trying them on, something I normally would never do.
Art
Marinko Šarić
A fantastic Osijek-based artist I now have two original oil paintings from done in the palatte knife technique. As Osijek is my husband’s hometown the art is a bit sentimental for us, but objectively it is also very beautiful and technique incredible. He does both Croatian landscapes from Slavonija and the Coast as well as beautiful still lifes.
View his art on Instagram
Maja Tomljanović
A Samobor-based illustrator and graphic designer with a distinctly feminine(ist) aesthetic. Her prints range from female icons to every day (body positive) women to city scapes to maps of Croatia.
View her prints on Instagram
Ivan Dilberović
A Zagreb-based graphic artist with really cool glow in the dark “thank you scientists!” prints of Marie Curie, Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla.
View his prints on Dilemma
Ranko Ajdinović
A Karlovac-based abstract artist whose paintings favour pastels and bright colours, but who also does geometric prints in reds and blacks.
Webshops selling Croatian products
Take Me Home
The webshop of a Croatian design and souvenir shop located in Zagreb, just off of the main shopping street and entrance to the funicular to the upper town (the oldest part of Zagreb.) My go-to for gifts but also things for my own flat, you can find anything from handmade jewellery to kids toys to home and kitchen products–all made in Croatian by Croatian designers.
Priceless Croatia
A webshop offering a number of personalised gifts (from art prints to cutting boards), all made by artisans in Croatia. They also sell Silvan soaps.
Delicije
A Dachau, Germany based webshop selling various delicacies from Croatia, I recently discovered them while looking for some shops that deliver to Belgium (since its not an easy feat). Specifically some little food items I could gift. They do have a great selection of jams (in particular the grape jam made of mali plavac grapes) and I’m really a fool for anything OPG (coming from small producers/farmers) like the honeys, but they also sell truffles, truffle infused olive oil and some of my favorite wines, so this was a great discovery.
Dilemma Posters
A webshop featuring prints from top Croatian illustrators and graphic artists. Aside from prints some of the designs are also offered on storage sacks, etc.
Tastebrandy.com
An online store based in Vukovar, they sell all kinds of šnaps or rakija –fruit, nut and herbal brandy from Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Slovenia. All the flavours are good, plum being the most popular, but my favorite is orahovac, which is made from green walnuts.
You can also order wine and beer, though shipping can get steep. 11 euros for 1-2 bottles, though worth it for the quality and taste of home.
Sol i papar 