AN ARTISTIC COALESCENCE OF FASHION, MUSIC, DESIGN, AND ART

Cover image courtesy of I’ll Call You Tomorrow

Made up of musicians, photographers, and DJ’s, and headed by Filipino designer Raeland Mendoza, I’ll Call You Tomorrow is a visionary creative brand making waves in the community. The art collective and lifestyle brand was created in 2015 by Raeland, then working in marketing, with a focus on fostering connection and community through their parties in the fashion, music, design, and art spheres. “Because we didn’t have a strong sense of community at the time, we sought out an umbrella to put our work under. This was the beginning of what’d become I’ll Call You Tomorrow.” In our conversation with Raeland, the designer and founder himself shares about the vision, influences, and growth of the brand thus far. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and comprehension. 

How has your journey been as an entrepreneur and business owner in Edmonton?

Though we’ve been around since 2015, we only really scaled up and became a more fleshed-out brand and business in the summer of 2020. I had left Edmonton after university to work in the fashion industry, with ICYT going on hiatus during then. I’m grateful for the time that I left before I returned just before the pandemic, as it allowed me to hone my design and business skills. Our team members had grown extensively in their creative pursuits as well.

To answer the question, each day, release, or event is unique and challenges me in different ways. Everytime I feel like I have a handle on things, something new presents itself and humbles me. For instance, this season we launched our first branded food product to the market, which has been a new game entirely. I prefer the challenge though, as it keeps things fresh. I am also fortunate to have plenty of more experienced people around me to lean on and learn from.

Tell us more about your university days studying Textiles & Marketing. What was it like starting ICYT as a university student? 

The preliminary stages of ICYT taking place when I was in university gave me the chance to experiment with what I was learning in school in real time. This allowed me and our team to quickly hone our skills, which now present themselves in our craft and the pace we maintain for ICYT. 

Back in our early days, one challenge was figuring out the message we wanted to convey as a collective; now it is more so getting our message onto the largest platform possible.

Where did the inspiration for the name "I'll Call You Tomorrow" come from?

The idea came from what you might say when you’d meet someone at our parties or events, and genuinely wanted to stay in touch, which circles back to the themes of community and connection. Plus, I just liked how it looked written out on paper. 

ICYT sounds like a complex intersection of different forms of art. Can you tell us more about the art communities you are involved in, and how your brand is involved in the fashion community?

At its core, ICYT has always been a reflection of our team members’ experiences and interests. Because of this, the brand lives in the intersection of many different cultural communities. At our parties you can see a diverse cross-section of the community, whether that is in the forms of aesthetic and cultural sensibilities, ethnic background, or sexual orientation. And that’s something we treasure and communicate through our other work.

In terms of fashion, I always love to see how people style our products. Since our product assortment is primarily merch and streetwear, it lets people interpret the styles in different ways — whether that's here locally, in different cities like Vancouver or Toronto, or even further in the US and overseas. Continuing to scale up into more cut-and-sew garments is probably what excites me the most looking forward.

Tell us more about Lola's Gift Shop.

Lola’s Gift Shop is a multi-brand boutique that is dressed up like a convenience store. It’s named after my grandma (“Lola'' is Filipino for grandma), and draws inspiration from Bodega’s and other ethic convenience store formats. 

Lola’s started earlier this year as part of an initiative to bring awareness to the businesses and culture of Edmonton's Chinatown, and has since evolved into a new platform for us to engage with the community. Earlier this summer, we hosted Lola’s Grocery Run, a wellness initiative to get under-represented communities active and outdoors this season. We’ve also launched “Big P.M.P’in”, a collaborative Peach Mango Pie ice cream made by Filipino street style-inspired creamery DRTY Ice Cream. 

Note: Lola’s physical shop hours are currently on hiatus as we prepare for the launch of our ICYT’s FW22 collection, but you can still shop Lola’s online 24/7. 

What are some of your favourite pieces released from ICYT in the past?

In terms of design, I’m usually more focused on what we’re working towards releasing so it can be hard for me to look backwards. Nevertheless, our Uniform Hat and all of its seasonal iterations have proved to be the backbone for us in terms of aesthetics and functionality. When originally working on the unstructured, vintage-style hat, I didn’t know it would continue to set the tone for our design language for us seasons to come.

What is one of your proudest moments with ICYT?

Our charity collection Chinatown Love Songs is always a special moment for me. (A curation of a staple T-shirt, snazzy tote bag, and one-of-a-kind hat, the merits of this series do not simply end at an elevated outfit — ASSIST Community Services Centre, a not-for-profit that provides comprehensive programs to aid immigrants in successfully integrating into mainstream society, receives 100% of the proceeds from this collection.) It’s my love letter to Chinatown, an area of the city that not only houses our studio, but means a lot to me as someone coming from an immigrant family.

It is also what got me my first GQ feature as a designer, which is a pretty cool achievement under the belt! 

What is something most people wouldn’t know about ICYT?

The fact that despite keeping a pretty busy calendar, we’re quite a small operation. I’m still running the bulk of our business on the MacBook Air I bought in first year university! 

As a business owner, what (if anything) would you do differently knowing what you do now? 

I’m not really one to have regrets; mistakes or obstacles are all simply learning experiences. If anything, I’d emphasize on always being open to new ideas and not being too set in your ways. Just because something worked last season or event, there’s no guarantee that it’ll work the next. 

What are your dreams for ICYT and where do you see it in the future?

My vision for ICYT is that we continue to establish ourselves, having a foot in as many cultural touch points as possible. I look to long standing brands like Stüssy; they’ve stood the test of time as well as cover so many bases. I’d be lying if I said that’s not what I’m aiming for! 

In the feels for a new streetwear piece or creatively planned party? Check out I’ll Call You Tomorrow on Instagram, and shop the brand online or in stores at Lola’s Gift Shop and FOOSH.