Hudson’s Bay to spotlight homegrown designers with pop up showcase

File Photo: The showcase is just the latest in a series of pop-ups at the department store, including one that featured eco-conscious fashion. (Photo by PRECIOSA ORNELA/Flickr, CC BY 2.0)

TORONTO — In little more than a year and a half, budding menswear label WIL Studios has caught the eye of fashionistas, singer Daniel Caesar and now Hudson’s Bay.

The massive retailer says it will showcase the emerging brand along with 11 other new and more established homegrown talents at a pop-up showcase this September.

Hudson’s Bay president Alison Coville says it’s all meant to give a national platform to Canadian designers that otherwise struggle to break through.

The pop-up is curated by the Toronto-based design management firm The Collections and will feature both new and more established labels, including Sid Neigum and Mikhael Kale.

Rahul Madan of WIL Studios says it’s a dream come true for his young brand, which he formed in early 2017 with university pal Eric Richards. The duo have found early success in securing the support of Caesar, who wore their clothes on tour and in a TV appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” earlier this year.

The pop-up launches Sept. 4 at five locations across the country, including two stores in downtown Toronto, and one each in Montreal, Vancouver and Chinook, Alta.

Madan says it’s especially surreal for the 26-year-olds to be selling their clothes at Hudson’s Bay because they each used to work for the company.

The showcase is just the latest in a series of pop-ups at the department store, including one that featured eco-conscious fashion.