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| Local creative duo team up to provide Calgary’s ladies with key value vintage pieces |
by Kimberley Jev |
| In Calgary, the quest for that one-of-a-kind item is what brought Heather Saitz and Lindsay Sutton together. They have chosen not just Calgary but the entire world to show off exactly how to find those “I have to have that!” items with their new online-only vintage boutique Fox Sparrow. “For me the initial concept came about because number one I love vintage and I also love eBay! So when I want to buy vintage I will typically go to eBay because you can find things that are uber original,” Saitz says, “I first bought a jacket from eBay… it’s a vintage piece but it’s a ‘key’ vintage piece.” Sutton, a Fine Arts degree major from the Alberta College of Art and Design, first showed her talent for attention to detail with the label Loyal Loot Clothing in 2004, which she worked on with furniture designer Doha Chebib. Saitz holds a degree in photography and creative advertising and recently received an applied arts magazine award for some of her work. For these business partners, life is about attention to detail. An integral part of running an eBay business is the items picked to go up on the site. The seller must pick with a good eye, “When we pick we look for things that are really unique…” says Sutton, “I think that is the thing that is the most desirable aspect of vintage. That it is a one of a kind, so you aren’t going to run into another person on the street wearing your item.” The slight twinge of dismay when the outfit you have on is walking toward you on somebody else is something every girl can relate to. “I bought a coat at Zara,” Lindsay starts, from the word Zara you already can tell which way the story is going! “…Which, I loved so much because of its crazy print but really, walking down the street and seeing someone else wearing it, it’s like...” Sutton gives a look of disappointment and throws her hands up as if to say no. “…And it’s so obvious you are wearing the same coat!” she cried. “So it’s really about having a piece that nobody else has.” “We share a moment of shared pain,” Saitz adds, “but really, with vintage you may be paying a premium price for a used piece of clothing but chances are this item is probably made better than the Le Chateau pair of boots that was mass produced in our times. “Anything vintage will last you longer.” A problem with shopping these days is mass-produced stores such as H+M allow for affordable fashion yet the items fail to last. “Nothing lasts anymore, nothing lasts, I can’t buy shoes that will last me more than a season but I have vintage bags, shoes and jackets that I have had and used for over five years and it was already 20, 30 years old when I bought them and they are still holding up,” Sutton said. The online-only boutique is the vintage shoppers delight with clean and detailed shots of each product. It feels as if you have just stepped into their very own private boutique right in your living room. “I think just because you are selling fashion on the Internet doesn’t mean it should be any different from selling fashion on 17th Avenue or selling it on Queen Street in Toronto,” says Saitz. “It has to be marketed well, you have to show the people your brand, what you are into. I mean yes the clothes are good quality, the styling is good quality and this is how you can wear it.” Saitz deals with the design and the photography of Fox Sparrow while Sutton deals with the styling and creative direction of the store. The auctions for items on Fox Sparrow go up every 10 days with approximately three days in between to allow Sutton and Saitz to shop, style, plan and fix the boutique for another round of auctions. |
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