She is fighting the odds and making fashion history, all in her teenage years.

Meet Maya Reik. Reik is a 19 year old high school dropout, who is also a self taught up and up coming  designer all around the world. Reik was born and raised in the village of Beit Yanai, Israel, where fashion is all about modesty. Reik has designed two collections, set up production at factories such as The Row, Gucci, and Stella McCartney, and even presented her clothes in her collection Marei 1998 during Milan Fashion Week. Although Reik made these accomplishments as a teenager, her achievements are highly respected by those three times her age.

Even as a little girl, Reik knew her dream was to design and make it big. Reik explained to Vogue Magazine that her first memory of wanting to be a designer was during her trip to Rome at the age of six.

“I have this image of myself standing in front of the mirror wearing a huge fur coat that was much too big for me,” said Reik to Vogue Magazine.

From that moment on, Reik told Vogue she was so devoted to her fashion success that she dropped out of high school at the age of 14.

“I was just not a school girl. I couldn’t sit and listen, I was always in my own mind,” said Reik to Vogue Magazine.

In Israel, the majority of Reik’s classmates were preparing to graduate and then enter the Israeli army because of the two to three year military service that is required for all Israelis. Reik, however, enrolled in drawing and fashion history courses at Shenkar college of engineering, design and art. Shenkar was home to other famous Israeli designers such as Alber Elbaz and Inbal Dror. Additionally, she took various sewing classes in Tel Aviv’s well known textile market.

The more classes Reik took, the more independent she was able to become in her designing. However, her inspiration came from various european cities and 1920s icons, all of which are not common in fashion in Israel.

Reik’s collections employs classic yet modern designs in her cashmere and velvet dusters, silk wrap dresses, and elegant robes trimmed with fur.

“It’s not so typical to Israel, the furs or the big kimonos. You don’t really see it here. The country has very intense heat and a more casual environment, so style in Israel today tends to be very informal,” said Reik to Vogue Magazine.

Reik held her show for her first collection in the Grand Hotel et de Milan this past February, and it was a big success.

Various reviews from Vogue and Style by Molekr conclude that some of Reik’s standout pieces from her inspiration from travels to Japan, Paris, and Milan, are a patterned suit and robes fashioned from Japanese silk.

As for Reik’s future dreams for her collection, she wants to continue to grow slowly and steadily. With her second collection dropping in the fall of 2017, she hopes to open her clothing to a more global audience. Additionally, her goal is to expand sales into the United States, Europe, and Asia. Following release around the world, she hopes she will open up a store in New York City.

You can view Reik’s collection on her Marei website.