We Love Vintage shop review

Where is it?
Private boutiques can be set up wherever you are. Also online at www.we-love-vintage.com and asos.com

The market, especially in the North, seems to be made up of really low end stuff that you have to rifle through to find a gem. I’m frustrated because those places are making people think they can’t buy vintage because it smells of moth balls, is battered and costs too much.

History:
Director of We Love Vintage, Sam Franks had more than money in mind when she set up this online vintage clothing and accessories shop.

“My whole family has a history in fashion” she said.

“My mother, grandfather and grandmother had shops in Cheshire, back when it was like ‘Are You Being Served.’ I rebelled of course, and didn’t carry on the family business but when I finished uni I decided I did want to get into fashion after all.

“I later worked for River Island as a fashion buyer for three years before I got fed up of it. Even though a lot of it was product development for the high street we took so much inspiration from vintage and I realised that’s where my heart was. Last March I left the rat race, left London, moved back to Manchester and set up my own company – We Love Vintage.”

Sam travelled the world over, sourcing and handpicking vintage stock from the 1940s – 1980s for her new venture. As well as her online shop, she’s also managed to get her products on ASOS marketplace and in two House of Fraser stores in the UK. She also runs private boutiques, where she gathers all her stock and sets up shop in homes and offices. In other words, Sam’s got all bases covered for peddling her wares.

What do they sell?
Dresses, playsuits, jackets, jewellery, handbags as well as ‘well loved’ versions of all the aforementioned, all available at cheaper prices because of their distressed condition. Prices start at around £12 for earrings and go up to £100+ for certain coats.

Confidential invited Sam to demonstrate her private boutique at the Spinningfields HQ. She laid accessories out on the table, including all manner of vintage brooches, rings and fancy clasp cocktail bags. Two rails were adorned in one-off retro outfits – many of which were styles imitated by modern day designers such as a Halston Heritage Sarah Jessica Parker wore in the Sex and the City movie. It was an eye opener to see how easy it is to get originals when you know how.

Sam also stocks many furs and was wearing a blue fox fur when we met. Controversial to some, she prides herself on making the most of the coats from which animals have been sacrificed.

She said: “I don’t encourage people to buy new furs. There are so many vintage furs that people shouldn’t be making them anymore. It’s not necessary. If it’s already there then fine, but don’t make a new one.” Furs start at around £35.

Who shops there?
If it’s a high designer bargain you’re after, as Sam suggests, you might be waiting a lifetime and even then, it will come at a cost.

“I have had the occasional piece – finds of a lifetime like a Herve Leger dress for $25. But if you’ve got £1000 to spend on a vintage Chanel, then you’re not really my customer. I don’t do designers unless they fall in my lap. They’re so rare. When I go to Paris, there’s a shop that does all vintage Chanel bags but it’s always empty because no one can afford to buy it.”

Sam, however, doesn’t exclude anyone from her customer base and also recognises some people still need convincing when it comes to trusting reasonably priced vintage. “The market, especially in the North seems to be made up of really low end stuff that you have to rifle through to find a gem. I’m frustrated because those places are making people think they can’t buy vintage because it smells of moth balls, is battered and costs too much.

“Low end vintage is how you make big money, but it’s never been about that for me. I just want to earn a bit of money, be ethical, really believe in what I buy and provide a personal service too. I don’t want to do mass market vintage. I pick everything and do all the work for the customer and my products are commercially priced and wearable.”

Why go there?
For vintage virgins and serial shoppers alike, We Love Vintage is a must visit if you want to find a vintage bargain with very little effort. Sam does the nagging for you.“I drive my suppliers mad” she said. “I’m really fussy and I don’t mind mending things either. If it’s beaded and over 30-years-old let’s face it, it’s not always going to pristine. I fix things so the customer doesn’t have to.”

Many of the items in stock come from the USA, where it’s “amazing for vintage because it’s really well priced” according to Sam.

She has built up a level of trust with her suppliers out in L.A which now means she can source items by looking at photos via email rather than having to make the expensive trip out there every time.

Over the last decade the market for selling vintage has gone from strength to strength and Sam believes the key to this is staying relevant to today’s fashion trends.

“There’s so much choice” she said. “When you’re going through eras of product you have to decide if it’s going to look good on, first and foremost. All the designers will admit they look back to move forward in fashion. It’s also about mixing it up. Buy a vintage belt and stick it on a 70s Topshop dress. Don’t be closed in by the boundaries of the high street.”

Future:
“I’d love to have a shop in Manchester” said Sam, “but I’d love it to be a warehouse done up like a boudoir with 1940s lingerie draped everywhere. I’d like to do packages with vintage afternoon tea or 80s cocktails and canapé. I could then talk through the history of the products and where I found them. I’m looking quite far into the future, but I do have that image in my head of how I’d like it to be.”

As well as her own future aspirations, Sam is also optimistic about the future of vintage fashion as a whole. After all, it is hard to imagine future generations cooing over a H&M bag from 2011. Plus it’s doubtful a modern day item would last that long anyway.

Sam said: “Most stuff we chuck away but there are always a couple of pieces you can’t bring yourself to throw away and that’s how vintage works. I think it will be the same in 2050.

“Quality was better years ago and there were no factories, but hopefully designer stuff will be saved for future generations. I look back now and wish I’d kept some things.”

Verdict:
The private boutique certainly went down well in the boardroom at Confidential HQ. It made a nice perk of the day for staff and allowed Sam to show off her collection as well as get across her very passionate and thought-provoking message about fashion:“There’s so much heartless and soulless product made in China. What I love about vintage is that it has a story and I sit there and day dream about who kept this handbag in such immaculate condition and what parties they went to with it.

“We can’t afford to be making endless new products, everybody should be doing sustainable things. This is my way.”

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