Passion for fashion knows no borders

Julija Zukova has found her way from Latvia to Vacaville and opened a Main Street boutique.

Julija Zukova is beyond the point of being surprised by all the questions. She knows what visitors to her new Main Street boutique are going to ask as soon as she opens her mouth to greet them.

Her Russian accent prompts questions such as “Where are you from?” and “How long have you lived here?” And then there is one question that continues to baffle her. “Do you like it here?”

Zukova taught herself to speak English after leaving Latvia, but her sense of humor is quite fluent.

Julija Zukova

“I should say I hate it here, but I like to torture myself,” she joked. “I’ve been here 7½ years. I must like it.”

After her then-boyfriend left Latvia in 2002, Zukova soon followed him to Lake Tahoe. The relationship dissolved after three years, however, leaving the 29-year-old Zukova on her own in a new country.

 She visited Vacaville for the first time after a friend she met at a ski resort invited her to a Cinco de Mayo party.  When she surveyed the local fashion scene, she noticed there was not much of one.

That is when she decided to go into business for herself by opening Zukova Boutique at 537 Main Street in December. The first item she bought for her store was a leather couch so men can relax as women browse.

 Zukova has been pleased by the response thus far, even if she has to answer all those questions.

Zukova Boutique, 537-A Main Street, Vacaville, CA 95688, 707-452-8738 http://www.zukova.biz