Step Inside Wilde Shop, Copenhagen’s Wildly Creative New Vintage Mecca
Walking into Wilde Shop is like stepping into a pastel-tinted fashion oasis. Outside, the sidewalks and streets of Copenhagen’s Vesterbro neighborhood are bustling, but inside Edda Hansen’s charming little vintage outpost, which opened last October, one can experience a stylish respite from the noise. Wilde is decorated with antique murano glass vases and bowls, a mid-century modern copper velvet sofa, and three racks of Hansen’s precious vintage collection, all of which she hunted and gathered over the last four years. Born in Hong Kong to a Chinese mother and a Danish father, Hansen spent her childhood in the bustling portside city, before moving to London to study art and design. She then spent several years in New York working as an associate art director at Trace magazine, before ultimately relocating to Copenhagen in 2014.
Though Hansen felt settled in Denmark, she felt an overpowering urge to reconnect with her creative side and find the next step on her career path. So she decided to travel the world on-and-off for four years and ended up collecting the beautiful vintage pieces that now line her store walls: treasures like Christian Dior white leather pants, Prada kitten heels, ostrich handbags, a classic Burberry trench coat, and old Céline jewelry. On her various jaunts, Hansen also discovered beautiful silk kimonos and formal dresses with exquisite workmanship, but no labels.
Hansen didn’t intend to open a vintage store. “I started very simply traveling to different cities in Europe to collect fashion pieces, take photos, and find inspiration,” she explains. “I wanted to see where all of these elements would lead me, and I wanted to spend time finding a new creative direction. For example, whenever I was in Paris I would always go to Père Lachaise Cemetery and visit the Oscar Wilde memorial. My friend and I used to bring flowers and champagne to his grave, celebrating his love for art, fashion, and writing.” Hansen would also visit the tombs of Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf, and Amedeo Modigliani, then head to a flea market nearby to sift through piles, where she’d find pieces like a Guy Laroche gold jacquard jacket and gold costume jewelry. Hansen also spent time going to car boot sales in London (the British term for a flea market), which yielded a beautiful wedding dress from the ’60s and classic wool overcoats.
When she is collecting vintage, Hansen explains that her eye is drawn first to the quality of the garment and then to vibrant pattern and color. She loves prints from the ’70s, micro-pleats, and “anything with ruffles.” Now that Wilde Shop is off the ground, Hansen is getting more strategic about her buy. “I’m now really looking at what’s on the runway. For example, puffy balloon sleeves and prairie dresses are making a big comeback, and I pay attention to that.” Hansen is well versed in what her customers want and, more generally speaking, what the average vintage consumer wants. “People are super interested in vintage clothing right now,” she says. “In the past, shopping for vintage clothing had a certain stigma. It was seen as a place where you’d only go if you had a very low budget for clothing but today, consumers are so much more aware of sustainability and the impact that the industry has on the environment. Instead of buying fast fashion, people want something special, something vintage.”
What’s more, Wilde Shop does not use any plastic packaging, only recycled paper. Prices range from $200 to $400 for designer items and from $90 to $200 for label-less finds—fairly approachable, especially when compared to high-end designer vintage retailers like ReSee and The Real Real that are thriving right now. Best of all, the Wilde experience feels personal and intimate, which was Hansen’s intention all along: “My concept was to create a vintage clothing community where one will get friendly customer service, warm hospitality and, most importantly, great creative energy.”
Wilde Shop Vintage
