On the eve of their first foray into the Melbourne market, we talked to Vincent Wu the Men’s Wear Buyer and Co-Director of Sydney-based fashion haven Incu. Read on as Vincent sheds some light on how to keep ahead in the retail game, what to wear this Summer and bouncing back after losing shit loads of money.
PEDESTRIAN: How did you get started in retail?
VINCENT WU: Brian (brother and Co-Director) and I have always had a passion for fashion retail stores and in our travels had discovered so many inspiring spaces that presented brands well. We were both working in another industry at the time and felt the time was right to start something up. We spent around 6 months doing research and talking to as many people in the industry as possible to gain a better understanding of the challenge that lay ahead.
P: How would you describe your personal style?
VW: To be honest, it is quite understated most of the time. It has changed recently, but I would say that comfort and fit are the two most important things I look for when I am buying for myself.
P: What are your Men’s and Women’s Summer essentials?
VW: I think menswear will continue to become more dressy and sophisticated, with a focus on fits and the use of quality fabrics. More of a preppy aesthetic is coming through as well, with polos and chinos starting to become popular again- slim chinos will be strong for those guys who are getting a little sick of wearing denim every day. Guys will also be willing to pay a premium price for good quality apparel and footwear… pieces they believe they will wear for a long time. For womenswear a boyish aesthetic will still hold strong, but detailing will be a key feature for Summer. Elegant simple tailoring will see pleats and paperbag waists on shorts, skirts and boyfriend-style trousers. Designers are using print to distinguish their designs and the Leopard print will make a return as a fun timeless favourite. Exposed zips, wedge heel booties and bowler hats are a few other features we’ll see in ’09.
P: What are your favourite labels?
VW: A.P.C., Band Of Outsiders and Weathered because they are very classic and effortless.
P: What do you see as the fundamental difference between Melbourne and Sydney fashion?
VW: We are going to find out soon when our Melbourne store opens up but I would say that Melbourne men dress up a little more than Sydney guys and they layer a lot of items together to create a pretty unique look. Sydney guys are a lot more casual and the easiest option for them is a t-shirt and jeans throughout most of Summer.
P: What prompted you guys to expand to Melbourne?
VW: We felt like we were ready for a new challenge and Melbourne is such an interesting market. We love creating unique retail environments and thought a totally new market where most customers would not know our store would be exciting.
P: How has the Global Financial Crisis affected your business/retail? What have you done to adapt?
VW: Luckily the Global Financial Crisis hasn’t affected us really, we are growing and our stock is selling through better than ever. It has made us focus a lot more on our product though and helped us to ensure that everything we buy is up to our own standards. There’s only so much you can do during these times but we always thought if we stuck with our vision and serviced our customers, that we should come out of it in a stronger position.
P: What are your favourite stores worldwide – why?
VW: There are so many stores that we are inspired by but I would say Muji is a great store concept. To me, they have thought through everything – from their product, to their store ambiance, the service they provide and their logistics. Their brand philosophy is so strong that I can’t see them ever closing down. Retail is in many ways a science and I think they have really mastered the art of retail. Every time I go into a Muji I feel like I need to buy something and it’s probably the only brand which I can say I could buy from for the rest of my life. The ‘lifestyle’ brand has been thrown around a lot but I think Muji is one of the only brands that can claim it.
Also I admire Topshop, they do the whole High Street concept so well and are definitely the most innovative within that market. The fact that they show during London Fashion Week and support young designers shows their commitment to constantly evolve and connect with the changing habits of their consumer.
P: Where do you see retail going in the future?
VW: Retail will become more and more personable… Customers are smarter now, they have more brand awareness thanks to the internet. You can’t dictate what people like anymore, you have to just make sure you have the product they are looking for and really understand your customer. The online environment will also continue to threaten traditional brick-and-mortar retailers and only the stores with a strong brand identity will survive.
P: How did the window display collaborations come about?
VW: We have these big windows in our stores and we always felt like doing something with them that wasn’t just centered around fashion. We get bored of seeing the usual window displays in stores so we wanted to push the boundaries a bit. Both our Sydney stores are in high traffic areas so we came up with the idea of collaborating with designers and artists and creating these great installations that would hopefully affect anyone that might walk past. Even if they don’t end up walking into our store, we thought it was fun just being able to influence someone’s day in a positive way… maybe they get inspired by it or perhaps it might ignite some kind of response… whatever the case might be, we thought it was a good space to communicate to anyone that might walk past and notice our windows. Our women’s wear buyer has a lot of experience in curating art exhibitions so she has come up with some amazing windows.
P: What has been Incu’s biggest triumph or most surreal moment?
VW: I think the biggest triumph so far is being able to see the passion that Incu has created within our staff. I’m really proud of the people in our organisation and I feel we have a great mix of people who have the right energy and drive for this company to continue to evolve. I don’t think Incu would still be around if we didn’t have such a group of talented people working towards a common goal. It’s inspiring seeing it all in motion.
P: If you could change anything in the past (re: the business) what would it be?
VW: There were a number of big mistakes that we made when we first started out and they definitely amounted to a lot of money lost. But, we did learn quite a lot from them so I’m not sure whether I would change those things completely.
P: What is the thought process that goes into deciding what to stock?
VW: We find brands that tell a story… That is what makes customers love a brand and feel ownership to it. There are so many brands out there and we have such a limited amount of space to showcase each brand so we are very careful about what we pick up. There is more to it than just creating a really nice collection; the brand has to represent something and be able to communicate that through its clothing.
P: Do you have any exciting collaborations coming up?
VW: We are just about to kick off an exciting initiative called †Incu Presents’ which is essentially a brand we have set up for when we work with external partners on various projects. The first few †Incu Presents’ collaborations that we have lined up are fashion focused and are very exciting, although I can’t say anything yet. In the future the †Incu Presents’ concept won’t just be limited to just fashion, as we have seen with the window project there is great potential to work with other industries as well.
Incu’s men’s store opens on Flinders Lane in the city. The store will stock the usual Incu suspects such as Marc by Marc Jacobs, Fillippa K, ACNE, APC, Band Of Outsiders, Surface To Air, Helmut Lang and Paul Smith, along with local labels Chronicles of Never, Rittenhouse, PAM and Vanishing Elephant.
Incu Men’s Melbourne Shop 6A, 274 Flinders Lane, Melbourne 3000
