Leandra Medine, the woman behind the blog Man Repeller, on March 1 will launch the brand’s first pop-up, MR Bazaar, at Canal Street Market located at 265 Canal Street. The store will operate Friday through Sunday.
“MR Bazaar at Canal Street Market brings a dream I’ve had for a while to life,” Medine said. “It is the first time we’ve created a physical manifestation of the site. While the space will sell merchandise, at its core, it will be as a community hub that’s open to all.
“We’re not in the game of chasing page views,” Medine added. “We have a tremendous comments section where the comments are all so insightful and intelligent, if not always agreeable. I thought, we’re fostering this incredible community.”
Medine said Man Repeller in June launched a community event series with commentators. “It got me thinking that it would be incredible if we had a space where we could bring the dot-com to life, where people could come and shop, sit and read, get cool recommendations, drink a coffee and discover a new food.”
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When she found out that Canal Street Market had some open space, “I was excited,” Medine said. “We wanted to partner with them because they’re giving a platform to all these artists trying to get their work off the ground.”
The pop-up shop will Monogram x Man Repeller collaboration T-shirts, the MR by Man Repeller shoe collection, hats, T-shirts and mugs. The shoes, a collaboration with Six London, are sold exclusively on Net-a-porter. In addition, there will be limited-edition Name Glo x Man Repeller neon LED lights — in the shape of boobs. “We’re obsessed with breasts at Man Repeller,” she said.
The launch event will be celestial-themed, with tarot card and palm readers, and scalp massages. There are six planned in all, including a game night.
Man Repeller will be at Canal Street Market for a month. “If things go well, I’d love to explore what the future of a permanent Man Repeller space would look like,” she said. “I’m eager to see how people respond to Man Repeller in real life.” Asked whether she aspires to designing a fashion line, Medine said, “I have a very particular point of view when comes to fashion, but I’m really a genuine fan [of other designers]. I feel my taste is being accommodated by what’s already out there. I don’t want to add to the noise. I guess, it will depend on how badly I need to scratch this itch.”