While some fashion retailers are closing their stores one after the other, Frank & Oak is instead betting on its success. At Frank & Oak, every order is signed by the person who prepared it. This shows the importance of personalized service to this menswear brand.
Situated in Mile-End, Montreal, it first made its mark on the web. But for this young company that embodies the very image of a new generation of retailers, the goal remains the same. “Our desire is always to gather a community around a different shopping experience,” says Ethan Song, founder and chairman of Frank & Oak.
Childhood friends Hicham Ratnani and Ethan Song grew up in the same classroom. In 2012, they joined their forces to launch the brand Frank & Oak. From the beginning, the Quebec firm seeks to design quality menswear by committing to choose only the best materials, to stay abreast of trends and offer a shopping experience without compromise. Their strategic deployment aims to bring people together around a common goal: an unostentatious style at an affordable price.
Frank & Oak accompanies clients in their choices. Each consumer delivered package contains a handwritten card. This is a simple way to humanize the online purchase and thus establish a direct contact with the customer. In a highly competitive retail market, the Montreal firm imposes a refined aesthetic and unparalleled creativity since a different collection is offered every month. Offer the right products at the right time: the Frank & Oak success lies primarily in this sense of timing. This is one of many reasons why the magazine Canadian Business ranked it in its list of 15 most innovative Canadian firms in 2015, just four years after the establishment of the company.
“Planning tomorrow, deliver today and catch yesterday.”
– Hicham Ratnani
According to Mr. Ratnani, “we live in a confusing time when the consumer is looking for meaning and purpose. The possibility that we offer our customer to belong to a community that has strong values is a very important differentiator. Our client is young, he has grown up online, consumes information differently and does not buy once a year. The purchase should not be a simple transaction, but an emotional act, a promise of fidelity”.
And the formula works: Frank & Oak has 1.6 million members in North America and offices in six Canadian cities. Their openness to the world is also present in their supply chain. They have suppliers in Asia and Europe, ensuring them to benefit from the finest materials and the latest international trends.
