About Vanessa Muri
Montreal City Editor Vanessa Muri has lived in London and Tokyo, but finds the charms of her hometown irresistible. From the latest scoops to the best deals in Montreal and everything in between, don't miss her weekly take on life in the fair city.
JACOB's Ladder
montreal musings Montreal
(Aug.11.10)
The Festival de Mode et Design ended on Saturday, and I've already posted our wrap-up of the highlights. One of my favourite shows of the week was from JACOB. Growing up, JACOB was always my go-to destination for classic wardrobe pieces, such as skirts, suits and turtlenecks. But this season is a whole new ballgame, as the designers added a trendier look that was well-received.
After a chat with founder Joseph (“call me Joey”) Basmaji, it’s clear that pure guts and determination led a tiny store in Sorel to become a power player in the field of Canadian women’s retail.
Joey grew up in Sorel where his father Jacob Basmaji owned a small menswear store. When he was only 17, his father became very ill and asked him if he'd take over the company, a small 800 square foot shop (and the family’s only source of income). Quite the huge responsibility for such young shoulders. He took the summer to decide, said yes, and never went back to school.
He started selling jeans (which at the time were not popular whatsoever!) for $1.95 a pair. Joey wanted to get Lee brand jeans, which were selling for a whopping $5.95 each. Still the ingénue, he signed a contract that bound him to 600 pairs a month. There was so much stock, he stored them in his house (hiding them from his father). Luckily, the distributor cancelled the contract on him. But retailers in Montreal suddenly wanted jeans and he essentially became the denim king of Quebec.
Joey started selling bathing suits for women and decided to throw a fashion show in Sorel. The producer wanted models from Mtl, one of whom was Ivana Trump – yes, that Trump – and 1200 people attended. He married the lovely Odette (pictured above with daughter Cristelle wearing my coup de coeur from their F/W 2010 collection) at the age of 22 and they opened the first JACOB in Montreal soon after. Their main competition, Le Chateau, was selling 80% menswear, so they decided to flip and just sell women's fashion. And the rest, as they say, is history.
***Scoop: JACOB will be selling long flowing gowns (think Andy The-Ahn) in November as part of their holiday collection.
Here are some of my favourite looks fresh from their second-ever fashion show at the Festival Mode et Design.
Watch out, Victoria’s Secret.