Fashion trucks are on the move in Toronto

Move over food trucks: this spring, the fashion industry is venturing into roving-retail territory. It’s not a new concept—Henry Holland hocked clothes out of a re-vamped ice cream truck in London last year, and the movement has been gaining momentum in cities like San Francisco and LA—but due to Toronto’s persistently frigid weather, curbside shopping hasn’t really been top of mind.

Now that the city is (kind of) defrosting, at least two shops-in-motion have emerged from the woodwork. Life of Manek, the Dundas West boutique that carries a colourful variety of vintage and contemporary pieces, is launching a mobile outpost this spring, and plans to peddle its collection from a redesigned mail truck. (Its first stop will be the Field Trip music festival at Fort York on June 7.) There’s also Fashion Truck Canada, a moving offshoot of Liberty Village’s Vocado boutique. It debuted its summery mixture of casual maxi dresses and distressed denim in the neighbourhood last weekend. Today (that is, March 28), shoppers can catch the truck parked at the corner of the Esplanade and Church Street.

We’re big fans of the store-on-wheels concept. That said, we hope these fashion trucks have built-in changing facilities—because shimmying into an outfit on the side of the street could take some of the fun out of shopping.