What Happened to Filipiniana Fashion Brand VINTA?
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Classic Pechera Barong (Source: vintagallery/Instagram)
VINTA had peaked in terms of revenue as an e-commerce business in 2021-2022. Post pandemic. When everyone had lots of money to spend after being on lockdown and inadvertently sitting on some extra discretionary budgets. I want to be transparent about this, because often people forget that this is a business that requires revenue to sustain the lives of the humans creating our products.
Arched Neckline Mermaid Terno Gown (Source: vintagallery/Instagram)
Since we were doing so well, I thought we should open up a customer-facing presence in Los Angeles, California, where a high percentage of our sales were coming from. So in 2022, we opened our showroom in LA. The community in LA was so incredibly welcoming, we regretted spending so much money on PR! People already knew us, and we were being approached and appreciated for coming. We dressed so many people for Hollywood galas. But as some of you know the way the system works; we often loaned out garments that were custom made for those people, and they would just return them, without paying. Big corporate conglomerate fashion houses do this, but we are just a small independent Filipino owned business in North America. So we took a hit.
Ultimately, we got some clout, but it didn’t match the revenue. In retrospect, it was because the initial “high” of Filipiniana fashion plateaued, and so did e-commerce sales post-pandemic. And yes, so many new brands came up and started copying the vibe and looks we created, at a much lower price point. Yes, even Temu got into the business of Filipiniana. That was the price point we ultimately lost to. The value of sustainable living wages of our Philippine based artisans, and the unparalleled quality of what we created wasn’t enough, unfortunately. I always knew that would happen, let’s be real. But my goal was always to make Filipiniana fashionable again. I definitely reached that goal, but the reality that comes with that is something else to grapple with. Our sales were on a steady decline. And it was getting hard to maintain the showroom.
Caroline Mangosing (Photo courtesy of Caroline Mangosing)
The vision I had from the beginning was to bring Filipiniana to the global stage. And not just Filipinos either. Because if Valentino and Jean Paul Gaultier can rip off the Barong Tagalog and the terno and sell it to non-Filipinos, why couldn’t I —a Filipina, and bring it to the world and pay our own people ethical wages for perpetuating the craft?
I always had non-Filipinos telling me that my designs were gorgeous, and they wish they could wear it, and I would tell them they absolutely could. But many feared being called out for cultural appropriation…meanwhile Valentino, Chanel, JPG could make it and sell it to non-Filipinos, and they got away with it. I even saw local Filipino people applauding these designers for appropriating our traditional garments (UGH, colonial mentality/white validation is a bitch tho amirite??). Granted this was in the 2010s and I think things have definitely changed especially with so many cool younger content creators who are looking at fashion with a much more critical lens. Thank goodness!
Inaul Black Tube Dress (Source: vintagallery/Instagram)
One of the brands that was on my inspiration board in the very beginning was Shanghai Tang. What started as a custom atelier making traditional Chinese garments, they evolved into a quintessentially Chinese luxury lifestyle brand that included contemporary interpretations of tradition, and more traditional designs. Perhaps it is easier done by a Chinese brand, because the whole world already knows the Chinese aesthetic. A much taller order for us Filipinos back in the 2010s, when there was no social media.
Anyway, I digress.
Black Ruffle Barong (Source: vintagallery/Instagram)
In late 2022 we were working toward creating a new brand that was Filipino inspired in some ways, but primarily contemporary women’s fashion. This was the beginning of REGALO Studios. As the sole designer in the company, the pressure on me was high. My investor wanted to focus on the new brand which can be scaled. We worked towards pivoting VINTA to the Philippine market. With the trade wars and the actual war happening in the world, going hyper-local is really the move. Our tiny and mighty team really had a lot on our plate. So we needed to put the pivot on hold, but not without creating a pathway for the atelier to sustain itself without the VINTA orders, and the reduced (in comparison) REGALO orders. Bernadette, our COO at the atelier, still had a network of contacts and she was able to secure local orders manufacturing white labeled children’s dresses.
Yes, even Temu got into the business of Filipiniana. That was the price point we ultimately lost to.
The outpouring of support from everyone on our social [media] and on email after we announced the closing of VINTA was so uplifting and encouraging. It really meant a lot to me and to the whole team. The IRL archive sale we had at the atelier in April was even attended by FilAm balikbayans who happened to be in Manila at the time!
All that to say, we are currently rebuilding a website so that our VINTA Lovers from the US and Canada and around the world can access VINTA designs again.
Custom Bronze Terno Gown (Source: vintagallery/Instagram)
That includes what is left of our ready-to-wear inventory, as well as made-to-measure pieces. Once I am ready, we will be opening up couture special occasion and wedding orders again. If you’d like to get in queue for a wedding/special occasion order in the next 12 months, you can already email us: customerservice@vintagallery.com. And the good news is, the tariffs from the Philippines is much less than if items are shipped from Canada.
We are essentially starting from scratch. Back to slow and intentional. We hope you can stay with us on this journey. I will announce here when we go live with the new website! So much more very soon.
This article was originally published in the author’s Substack page: https://substack.com/@vintagallery
Caroline Mangosing is a serial founder + creative director based in Toronto.
