Melange: The one-stop shop

Fashion and fine dining at Islamabad’s first multi-brand store.

ISLAMABAD:

Melange boutique brought much needed change to Islamabad’s suffering fashion scene — it launched as the city’s first multi-label store in November 2009, under the auspices of its CEO Samina Lakhani.

The Express Tribune met with Lakhani at the store’s coffee shop, Cafe Melange, which is tucked into the far end of the spacious boutique. Melange’s trend setting history and new collections were talked about over freshly brewed coffee.

“My motive to start Melange came out of the lack of designer and multi-brand labels in Islamabad,” explained Lakhani. “I wanted to capture the Islamabad market, which is as selective as it is spoilt,” she said with a smile.

Melange started with thirty-two designers and very quickly expanded its profile; now, the store includes collections from forty-eight designers under one roof — and has everything from clothes to jewelry and shoes to bags.

The creations of Rizwan Beyg, Deepak Pervani, Sana Safinaz, HSY, Aisha Hashwani and Zara Shahjahan are stocked here, offering a diverse selection of looks from across Pakistan. Melange’s display this year seems dominated by cotton: The Shehla collection’s pink printed cotton kurtas (Rs25,000 and up) and ready to wear three-piece outfits with heavy embroidery, are especially eye-catching.

Similarly, Rizwan Beyg’s casual lilac and peach cotton tops, also in turquoise and yellow, sum up the colors of the season. These are also reasonably priced — ranging from Rs9,500 to Rs12,000 — in comparison to pricier multi-label stores like L’atellier and ModeVille, where non-bridal outfits can go up to Rs150,000.

“We’ve also had a recent cotton linen exhibition by Aisha Hashwani, which went very well,” said Lakhani. Hashwani, known for her intricate embroidery, stocks her embellished pieces at Melange. Her formal/eveningwear ranges from Rs25,000 to Rs35,000.

Lakhani shared the more popular looks being displayed at her store. “For summer 2011, it’s lots and lots of cotton, especially from Deepak. And the price is so reasonable, starting from Rs 3,000 onwards.”

Deepak Pervani’s brightly-hued cotton line, D Philosophy, as well as his formal chiffons in darker, evening-appropriate colours, are priced below the normal market price at Pervani’s flagship store. At Melange, his trademark formalwear ranges from Rs46,000 upwards, a better deal than, say, a steep Rs65,000 (and higher) market price. Even the lower priced items are high-quality and durable; they feel light enough to wear comfortably in the heat and the colour is guaranteed to last.

“Our affordability is one of our strengths,” said Lakhani. The lower priced casual wear at Melange — Rs700 onwards — includes colorful, summer appropriate kurtas and tees from youthful Gulabo and work-appropriate Sheep.

“I also wanted to create a platform for local, Islamabad-based designers like Mariam Noman, Abda Noman, Sana Khan, Sherbano Yaseen and Huma Taj,” added Lakhani. According to her, Melange paid off as the Islamabad-based designers are selling this season. Sana Khan is a particular standout, whose vibrant cotton shirts in yellow and pink as well as her floral prints are as lively as they are affordable, priced at Rs5,000 and higher.

It doesn’t end here; Lakhani’s got big plans for Melange. “We’re planning on opening up shop in Faisalabad as we have a lot of clients there and a high demand,” she announced. Melange is set to introduce its bridal collection in three months and will be launching its Eid collection in the last week of July.

Cafe Melange, which was inaugurated in November 2010, is raking in enough clientele to rival the boutique. Sami, the restaurant’s manager, explained that the cafe’s continental menu — which offers Italian, French, Thai and Moroccan cuisines (to name a few) — is catered specifically for refined palettes. They even attract members of the diplomatic community, who have taken to the ambience and cuisine.

“I like to come in at around 6 pm when it’s packed,” said Mavra Bari, 20, “And my friends and I like to people-watch over our smoothies.” The menu is wide-ranging and mostly keeps within the Rs500 mark; hence, the popularity.

The cafe is also opening up a cigar lounge to increase its male clientele and a live bar for an assortment of refreshments like cocktails, smoothies and freshly brewed juices.

Melange may be the oldest multi-brand store in Islamabad but it is in no way lagging behind newer establishments like L’atellier and ModeVille. Its reasonable prices attract a steady stream of customers and the cafe has quickly become a veritable hotspot for Islamabad’s crème de la crème.





Published in The Express Tribune, June 11th, 2011.