QV & A: Incu
Incu founders Brian and Vincent Wu have carved out a unique position in Australian fashion culture. With their curated collection of international brands alongside their signature inhouse label, Brian and Vincent have encouraged an evolution by exposing their customers to new brands and curated experiences since Incu was first established in 2002.
We caught up with Brian Wu to talk clothing curation, style evolution and the new brands to look out for.
What was the inspiration for the name Incu?
Incu stands for incubate or incubator. Our mission was about bringing unknown brands, whether Australian or from overseas, and to help build these brands here. That’s where we started out.
This philosophy of encouraging a sense of discovery, of allowing our customers to be able to enjoy the hunt for new brands and stumble across new designers that embody their unique sense of style, continues to carry through to this day.
What sets Incu apart in terms of customer experience?
A key component is for the staff to give their honest opinion and be real with the customer. Authentic service is key, and to come up with a solution for what they might be looking for. We’re not trying to rush them out the door or into a sale, we want them to take their time.
We’ve never been overly obsessed with trends. Instead, we have focussed on delivering a low-pressure service orientated environment, which is welcoming and inclusive and where customer service is personalised and genuine.
Where do you see fashion heading this year?
People are a lot more expressive of their own individuality. We are seeing confidence in curating your own wardrobe amongst men and women. It’s particularly interesting to see this amongst men. They are a lot more confident in what they want to wear, and a lot more confident to express themselves via different colours, fabrications and fits.
There is now a whole range of different fits that people are interested in. It is not as trend driven anymore, particularly in our sector. This has given us a really exciting possibility to bring in even more interesting collections in the future. It’s a lot more celebrated to see people dress differently, people are open to a wide variety of unique looks.
What new brands are on your radar right now?
We have a host of new brands hitting the racks soon including Lisa Says Gah, MM6, Caes, Wynn Hamlyn, Comoli and mfpen. We expect to see increasingly bold fits, fashion pieces and bold colours that are more of a statement.
Discover Incu on Albert Coates Lane, QV Melbourne.
Open Monday to Thursday & Saturday 10.00am – 6.00pm, Friday 10.00am – 8.00pm and Sunday 11.00am – 5.00pm.
Visit www.incu.com