Frances Valentine Teams With J. Press for Menswear Collection
The American-made assortment is being sold through both brands' sites and in select stores.
As menswear continues to be a growth opportunity for many brands, Frances Valentine is trying its hand in the sector with a one-season collaboration with J. Press.
Consisting of apparel and accessories, the just-out capsule collection is a first for the New York-based Frances Valentine. The union features the label's vintageinspired prints and J. Press' classic Ivy League styles. The aim is a summer-ready assortment: think floral buttoned sport shirts, preppy hibiscus-printed pants, madras shirts and washed twill shorts in pastel colors.
Retail prices for the made-in-USA assortment range from $110 to $245. Within hours of launching Wednesday, the $165 “Prospect Park” print trousers had sold out on the J. Press website. The collection is also being sold via Frances Valentine's site and in select stores.
While women's sportswear and accessories have been the focus for Frances Valentine, the company's cofounder and chief executive officer Elyce Arons has menswear experience, as a founder of Jack Spade and Kate Spade. Based in New York City, Frances Valentine was started in 2016 by Arons, Andy Spade and his late designer wife Kate.
Positioned as a modern American lifestyle brand, Frances Valentine recently opened a pop-up store in the Hamptons, where it also has a permanent outpost in Sag Harbor. The brand is embarking on a series of exclusive trunk shows with one slated for May 10 in Raleigh, N.C. that will raise funds for Dress for Success in Triangle, N.C., and another set for May 12 in Richmond,
Va. that will help support the One Love Foundation.
J. Press namesake Jacobi Press was a Latvian immigrant, who put down roots in New Haven, Conn. in 1896 to continue his rabbinical studies. Instead, he started working at Goldbaum Tailors and became a partner. In 1908, Jacobi bought out Goldbaum to form his own tailor shop J. Press, six years after the first store opened in New Haven.