The permanent space for It’s Vintage is all that and a bag of chips

We all know the experience of shopping in an ukay-ukay: the thrill of discovering a forgotten designer piece, trying on novel things, the cheap, cheap prices. But after hours of digging through dusty rooms and sometimes piles of dirty clothes, you might ask yourself: is this worth it? 

Well, the answer to your ukay woes is It’s Vintage. You may have heard of it — it’s the brainchild of young entrepreneur Fed Pua, who also has a sister label called Factory. It’s Vintage is basically a thrift shop, with clothes sourced from all over the world (the States mostly). And while selling vintage clothes is not exactly a new or novel idea, the main draw here is that the collection is curated by Fed himself. 

It’s Vintage has been around for a couple of years, doing pop-ups around the metro, but last Jan. 26 it finally opened up its first permanent retail space in Makati. We talked to Fed about opening up the store, its design, and what’s next.

YOUNG STAR: How does it feel to finally have a permanent space for It’s Vintage? 

FED PUA: So surreal! I feel like the store is the culmination of everything I have been through professionally and personally. It’s my baby! 

Prior to this, you’ve also had a lot of success doing pop-ups. What made you decide to get a permanent retail spot? 

The goal was always to open as a permanent brick-and-mortar store when I launched the brand. The pop-up shop model served us well in the beginning to see whether Manila was ready for a concept like this (they were) and also to save up to build the dream store which is finally here. 

How did you come across the space? 

I always dreamed of being in this street because I always felt it to be special: quaint but very creative with all the independent shops around us. It was this street or nothing so we visited each and every building here and requested for the contact details of the administration and we reached out to all of them. Out of all of them, I felt in my gut that this was the best one.

Really love the vibe of the store. How did you go about designing the space, and did you work with anyone in executing it? 

I wanted to create a space that was homey, well designed, but still timeless. I designed the space with the idea of a cross between a midcentury lodge and a Japanese library. There were certain elements that I was set on making such as the taxidermy display and the vinyl area, and the rest was just modeled around those. 

The space was a collaborative effort with Mara Manalo (Studio Mara) and her team. They really helped polish the plan for the interiors of the store and made it a reality down the smallest detail. They made the dream a reality.

Any plans on getting a space for your other label Factory? 

None for the meantime. I think I like how Factory runs on a very small scale. Each design in Factory is unique and produced in small batches and I would like for it to stay that way. We are preparing for our next collection which I’m also really excited to reveal soon.

It’s a big year for everyone. What other exciting things do you have in store for 2020? 

I feel like the team and I are still settling in our new home now. We really did not expect the brand to blow up this big after launching our store a couple of days ago. 

I’m planning to do another buying trip soon in the States which is really exciting. More news about that in the future. 

It’s Vintage is located on the second floor, 109 Esteban St., Legazpi Village, Makati City. For more information, follow @itsvintagevintage on Instagram.