The new womenswear standalone from Montreal’s Frank and Oak is ostensibly a pop-up, but it won’t be popping off any time soon.
The 700-sq.ft. space opened at 1173 Robson St. on Dec. 14 and will be around for a year. What’s in store? The brand’s full range of elegant basics, like everyday crew-neck sweaters, drapey dresses and slim-cut overalls, plus the odd trend piece.
Womenswear standalones opened in Montreal in September and Toronto in November. And while Vancouver’s shop is small and supposedly temporary, PR manager François Mercier says that’s simply a limitation of the lease, and there will be a bricks-and-mortar presence here longterm.
Don’t expect to see one on every corner, though. “We started five years ago as an online-only brand and when we opened our first store it was supposed to be just a showroom,” says Mercier. “We have big plans for 2018, but we are still a small company of just 200 people and we want to be careful and strategic, expanding impactfully. We’re never going to saturate the market.
To mark the store opening, there’ll be special events on Friday, Dec. 15 from 5-9 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 16 from 12-3 p.m. Lindsay Sjoberg of Vancouver blog Treasures & Travels will be giving styling advice, DJ Niña Mendoza will spin, and there’ll be special treats and gifts with purchase for early birds.
