c. 2012 — 2018

An online consignment store

Conceived while working as a sales associate on Conduit St in London, UK during grad school

Upon returning to Canada, I met with a budding designer / developer at a Starbucks in Vancouver’s West End, drew a tile-based concept on a napkin, and a week later he delivered an elegant website unlike any other

There was no shopping cart, and no checkout, only a contact form — customers would inquire via individual product pages and receive a prompt response, and accompanying PayPal invoice, directly via email

re. porter pre-dated platforms such as Grailed or Shopify, and fostered a distinctly slow, and uniquely intimate means of commerce

This antiquated approach to transacting saw few errors, nigh on zero returns, and fostered an enviably warm, respectful, & enduring relationship with every client

The website itself consisted of a set of living tiles

Visitors would see tiles replace themselves in real-time, as needed, with photos, text, information, or forms — flowing from page to page with zero interruption beyond bandwidth limitations

re. porter catered to the men’s avant-garde market - focusing on highly directional brands such as Boris Bidjan Saberi, Carpe Diem, Carol Christian Poell, Guidi, m.a+, and Rick Owens

It is through re. porter than I established my presence in the global fashion market, later using it as a vehicle to secure direct retail relationships with vendors I would choose to collaborate with on my next project - an alternative retail concept called Calculus

At the time I launched the store, my only experience in the fashion industry was working as a sales associate at an avant-garde guerilla shop in Vancouver

I had to seek out a web developer, secure & manage consignors, teach myself studio lighting & photography, navigate import & export particularities, et al [ad infinitum]

Outside of modeling, there was not a single responsibility associated with the store [creative, administrative, or otherwise] that I did not handle myself

re. porter launched in March 2012, and by the time I was meeting with designers in Paris for market week circa 2015 - they all knew who I was, and were already either fans, customers, or consignors of the store