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Klassen: 25 years of fashion.

Photo courtesy Shelley Klassen

Local designer rebrands fashion

By Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins

Published 12:18 PDT, Fri October 11, 2024

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Our City Tonight recently sat down with iconic Vancouver designer, Shelley Klassen, who has been designing women’s clothing for over 25 years. Her design and retail store were called Blushing Boutique, and up until recently has been in the same spot downtown Vancouver for 18 years. Shelley has a huge following of loyal customers, and she has been creating beautiful and fashionable clothes for all types of women for many years. We wanted to catch up with this very talented designer and find out what’s new and exciting for Shelley Klassen Designs this fall season.

OCT: Shelley, Our City Tonight has been doing our show now for 10 years and your boutique was featured on one of our very first shows during the online edition of our TV show. I’ve worn your clothes to events, I’ve walked in your runway shows, and I have traveled to exotic places with your designs, and I can say firsthand from experience how beautiful and comfortable your clothing is. Tell us what’s new and exciting for you, Blushing Boutique, and Shelley Klassen Designs?

SK: The biggest news is that we rebranded, so the store is no longer called Blushing Boutique. We rebranded to my name, which is very exciting and of course we went online with a much larger presence when COVID hit and with COVID restrictions, we were focussed mainly online.

I really wanted people to know that this wasn’t just a boutique that carried other retail line labels. It was and is a design boutique. All clothing is designed in-house and made locally in Vancouver. So yes, COVID was obviously quite tricky to navigate as many retailers can attest to, but thankfully we had a successful pivot into what people were searching for; loungewear, cozy wear and anything and everything that we thought would sell at that point in time. Thank goodness that we came through at the other end. Once again, the brand is pivoting and it’s an exciting time for us.

Things have changed quite a bit in many industries and particularly in the retail arena. When you’re looking at the economy after COVID, coupled with global warming and online shopping, there are so many different factors that have personally affected my business. It has come to a point where I’ve realized over the years that I can’t be everything for everybody when it comes to designing. I have noticed so many women struggling to find clothing that actually fits them properly or comfortably.

Research shows something like $1.8 billion worth of unsold clothing that is left over every year in the United States alone. The major portion of why things are returned are because they aren’t fitting properly. What I have discovered is most of my clients know what works well on their own bodies. And so, they might prefer a fit in a flare depending on their body shape and when they come into the store, they would say I would love to wear that design, but I just can’t wear that neckline, or I can’t wear that in that shape.

What we are doing this fall is we are offering clothing that you can customize to your personal preference. So, for example, the top that I’m wearing in this interview it’s just a velvet crewneck top that is sleeveless. This top actually comes with a turtleneck that is removable. Just so you know, turtlenecks are all the rage this fall. With a removable turtleneck this top is very versatile but then you can also order it with a flutter sleeve if you want to cover the top of your arms. It is also available with a cap sleeve or a full-length tight sleeve, giving you the option to purchase it the way you would like. I am doing this with a select grouping of clothing and it’s a soft launch this fall, but it is something that I’m aiming to do on a larger scale as we build different styles. We’re very excited to be able to offer this to our customers.

OCT: This is so exciting, and of course, we’re thrilled that you continue to design clothing for the women in this beautiful city. Will you keep a physical storefront?

SK: Yes, I will, and the storefront is still going to have items that are ready to wear. We will have product in store for people who want to come in and have that instant satisfaction of leaving with something. We also have an area set up like a showroom with different samples on display. And then as well, online you’ll be able to see all the different options.

OCT: That is all such wonderful news, and to our viewers, you heard it here first. How very exciting. Shelley where can people find out more information?

SK: You can go directly to my website which is shelleyklassen.com and my boutique, Shelley Klassen Designs, is located at 583 Richards Street in Vancouver.