 |
Vancouver is home to a thriving fashion industry made up of individuals committed to its growth and success. Get to know these personalities in The Inseam and discover what makes the Vancouver Fashion scene so awesome. |
Photo: courtesy Amaly Narong
On the outskirts of Gastown, past all of the hustle and bustle of Water Street, lies a set of spaces that are now home to brand new creative businesses. One storefront sign reads, “TODAY you are special.” The neighbourhood’s newest boutique offers up labels like Finders Keepers, Evil Twin, Mink Pink, Yesterday Vintage and Lonely Hearts. TODAY was founded by Amaly Narong, who has been well known in the city for her minimalist jewelry line, and unique style – check out her feature on In the Closet.
I caught up with Amaly to discuss her concept for TODAY, her challenges and the Gastown neighbourhood.
Valerie Tiu: You were the Managing Director and Oak + Fort, and you have been designing your jewelry line for a few years now. Clearly, fashion is your calling. Can you describe your first fashion memory?
Amaly Narong: My first fashion memory was when I was about three years old and my dad took me to this girl’s birthday party. I convinced her and three other girls to do a fashion show, so we cut holes in our shirts, and I cut up my socks into legwarmers. We all walked out and our parents were so upset that we had cut up our clothes. But ever since then, I’ve really been into fashion. I like taking things apart, putting things together and finding different ways to wear things. So from a young age I was very fond of fashion.
VT: Did you always anticipate starting your own business?
AN: In the back of my mind, it was. I remember being really young and telling my parents that I wanted to be a fashion designer, and they would be like, “Well that doesn’t make sense because people in fashion don’t make money.” With that said, I kind of went through life telling myself that it wasn’t something that I should indulge in. So I went to school for commerce for a little bit, and after about two years, I thought, “This sucks.” So I dropped out of that, moved to Vancouver, went to Blanche McDonald and took the fashion design program. Right after I finished that, I moved to New York to do an internship with Nanette Lepore for six months, came back, did a few internships, and then realized that fashion design wasn’t really what I wanted to do. I was more into the merchandising, marketing and the business aspect of things. That’s when I started at Oak + Fort. I helped them from the beginning with operations and managing the team, and helped them establish a brand identity. It was after about one year that I decided I wanted to do something like this for myself. So that’s where I am now.
VT: How did you come up with the concept for TODAY?
AN: I really wanted to focus on contemporary garments, something relevant to today’s fashion. But also, with our tagline, “Today you are special” – I think a lot of people forget to live in the present moment, they’re always living in the past, or forecasting the future. If we can bring our attention to today and remind ourselves that we are special, then we can make people happy. Just reminding people of that is what we are trying to achieve.
VT: How would you describe the aesthetic of TODAY?
AN: We have a selection of vintage garments. I think a lot of new fashion is inspired by vintage. I would say it is more of an alternative, grunge feel. I like to focus on oversized silhouettes, things that are flattering on a female without showing too much skin. Things that I would wear.
VT: Who shops at TODAY?
AN: A lot of the people that we attract in store and the people we aim for are the girls that are about to finish post secondary, or are early in their career stages and are fashion conscious. People who like to be out there and socialize, be active, and are into what’s new in Vancouver.
VT: The space and décor here is very distinct. How does this complement the pieces you carry?
AN: When we started putting the store together, we thought about the most resourceful ways that we could go about it. My boyfriend is a carpenter and he works on a lot of different job sites, and when they are done, they just dispose of the materials. So we thought it would be good to save that stuff. A lot of it is just old pieces that we have repurposed – it kind of falls into the sustainable category. We’re recycling a lot, and that ties into our vintage wall – it’s repurposed fashion. We want to be conscious of the things we are putting in store, where it’s coming from, and the value behind it.
VT: Opening a new store is a huge undertaking. What’s been the biggest challenge so far?
AN: The biggest challenge for me is just being able to communicate with the audience effectively. We are in an area that doesn’t have that much foot traffic. We took a big risk moving into this area, but we saw a lot of potential in it as well. It’s a great community. So it’s really just been about getting the word out there.
VT: Why did you choose Gastown/DTES area to set up shop? What makes the neighbourhood special?
AN: I really like the community. It’s a really different feel out here. There’s a lot of different characters. What I really want to do is be able to merge the traffic and the community where Gastown now rests, and where Main Street, Chinatown and Union Street are. There are some great stores out there – Charlie & Lee, Board of Trade, Harvest, The Union. So if we can merge and bridge that gap, we can really develop a strong community out here. I really encourage people to come out and other businesses to develop around here because it’s a great place.
VT: Why Vancouver?
AN: I’m originally from Alberta, and when I moved out here to go to post secondary, I didn’t like Vancouver – it rains too much! But after I left, I felt that there was something about the rain that I missed, and something about the people. I feel that the people out here are a little more relaxed and take more time to enjoy life, instead of going full throttle on everything. So I can see myself being here for a long time.
Check out TODAY at 158 Powell Street.
Photos: courtesy Amaly Narong
