You may have seen a funky retro Airstream driving around Dallas-Fort Worth with the words “High Maintenance” flanked by two pink flamingos stamped on its shiny exterior. Take a closer look and you’ll realize it’s a mobile fashion boutique full of trendy styles on its way to fulfill its clotheshorse destiny.
Founded two years ago, Couture in a Can is a portable shopping experience offering wearable yet hard-to-find brands not carried in most local stores. Stylists and owners Sande Brandt and Rosie Vann-Dalton strive to stock unique pieces by going to market in places like New York and Las Vegas. As a result, they carry about 15 different designers at any one time, such as Hudson, Union of Angels, Red 23, Show Me Your Mumu, Sky, Stop Staring and Level 99.
Beyond catching Couture in a Can at its pre-planned stops, anyone can reserve it for personal or group shopping.
Shoppers will find casual to business casual looks; comfortable denim; sundresses; double stretch trousers (as comfortable as yoga pants); novelty T-shirts; and a few accessories like scarves, belts and necklaces. Although most first-timers step inside expecting to peruse chic tops, most of the Can’s return business is for perfectly fitting pants.
In addition to the carefully selected offerings, Brandt and Vann-Dalton believe their customer service and styling expertise set them apart from other stores. “You can go to any mall and find cute clothes if that’s how you like to spend your time,” Vann-Dalton says. “But if you hate the process and don’t know what to put together, then we are your new best friends.”
Whether it’s a cause or effect of its limited size, Couture in a Can focuses not on retail volume but on building relationships with clients based on trust. They also encourage women to try something new that they might not otherwise pull off the rack.
Brandt and Vann-Dalton aren’t going to say a customer looks great in everything she tries on just to move merchandise. They’d rather establish an honest rapport and only sell clothing that truly fits and fulfills a customer’s needs.
Now, with a recently re-branded logo, Couture in a Can has a calendar full of planned stops coming up: Winslow’s Wine Cafe in Fort Worth (May 28), Autos in the Park at Cooper Aerobics Center (June 1), Patrizio Osteria Southlake (June 5), Michael’s Cuisine in Fort Worth (June 12) and more, which you can find listed on their website or Facebook page.
Beyond catching the Can at its pre-planned stops, anyone can reserve it for personal or group shopping. In fact, it’s most frequently used for private parties. Put down a $250 deposit (which may go toward purchases) and it’s in the can, so to speak.
Couture in a Can rolls around the Dallas-Fort Worth area in a 1977 Airstream.
Ice skaters showed off their moves in the "Central Park" rink.Photo by Ashley Gongora
The Kilgore Rangerettes channeled the Radio City Rockettes.Photo by Ashley Gongora
Dessert included a cake that looked like a blue Tiffany box.Photo by Michael Merry