Good things come to those who wait—at least in the case of Danish label Sigurd Bank has been playing a slow game with his company; he doesn’t advertise, nor does he do fashion shows (barring the odd exception). This is less a conscious strategy, though, than simply the way Bank likes to do business, and it’s worked to the point where using “cult” as an adjective to describe the brand feels right. Mfpen’s vibe is low-key, its palette muted, and the silhouettes are variations on classics—think suiting for guys that doesn’t imply “office,” loafers with a safety pin instead of a penny.
The USP is that everything is made with deadstock fabrics, which limits the size of runs. Last year, Bank launched a women’s line that hews closely to the men’s, and now he’s opening the brand’s first store with a block party during Copenhagen Fashion Week. Up to this point, Mfpen sold through a now closed apartment store, located in a room just off its design studio.
The transition from that informal setup to a proper shop wasn’t long planned. “We were headhunted [for the space],” Bank explains. “In answer to the question, ‘Did you always dream of having a store?,’ My answer is, yes, I have always wanted the store, at least for the last six months.
” Located in a sort of colonnade of shops that’s central yet, in Bank’s words, “off the highway...
something you need to look for,” the store is in good company: Another Aspect, Roe Studio, and Tekla Fabri.