How 2 Winnipeg boutique owners are working to make a safe space for all shoppers
Vantage Vintage aims to be welcoming to LGBTQ+ and BIPOC people, co-owners say in new short film
When Winnipeg shop owners Michael Duchon and Joshua Alderson began trying on new stock for their vintage clothing boutique, there was no ulterior motive.
The pieces, many of them circa-mid-20th-century dresses, were just too beautiful to leave laying in the boxes.
"Initially, it wasn't about making a political statement whatsoever. I think for a lot of people I think it has become that," said Duchon, who co-owns Vantage Vintage in Winnipeg's Exchange District with Alderson.
So the partners began peppering their Instagram feed with shots of themselves wearing some of the clothing.
"I think people really appreciate that, [to] see in men in dresses," Duchon said. "I don't even see it that way. It's us in dress."
In real life, the shop has become a safe space for LGBTQ2 and BIPOC shoppers to be themselves and try on whatever they like without judgment, say the owners.
Duchon and Alderson's story of creating safe spaces for shoppers is the subject of a new short documentary for CBC Manitoba's Creator Network.
The four-minute film by Winnipeg filmmakers Tyler Funk and Carmen Ponto, which you can watch above, dives into the business partners' motivation as shopkeepers creating a place for people who may not feel comfortable in more mainstream retailers.
See more work by filmmakers Tyler Funk and Carmen Ponto: