DECEMBER THIEVES

With avant-garde fashion on the rise in the Boston fashion scene, Lana Barakat has taken the reins with her original brand, December Thieves. Located on Beacon Hill, this small, upscale fashion boutique has changed the retail game for brands and designers alike.

Barakat’s fashion sense stems from her background and international travels. Barakat grew up in the country of Georgia and came to the United States as a young adult to study advertising and marketing at Boston University . After graduating she moved to Mexico City, where she worked for a multinational ad agency. In Mexico, she also produced her own brand of jewelry, and eventually jewelry became her side business. The ad agency moved Bakarat to London, and after settling down in the UK, she decided to launch her own business.

December Thieves was born out of Barakat’s aesthetic, which she describes as “...very diverse and global as a result of my international upbringing and work and life experiences.”

Design and art have been at the forefront of Barakat’s life since she was young. This passion grew into an interest in fashion, and the art of clothing, which helped launch her start up.

Although conceived in London, she wanted to debut her new business endeavor back in Boston. Her brand, December Thieves, initially opened in the South End’s SoWa district, but quickly transferred to the storefront on Beacon Hill alongside its new sister shop, Thieves Next Door, a home decor and jewelry brand. Barakat ran both stores for a few years before deciding the location was December Thieves’ forever home. She describes it as a place where people do not necessarily expect a store such as December Thieves to be located, but that the location helped her to achieve the dream of having two side-by-side storefronts. Barakat and the December Thieves’ team work with independent and emerging brands and artists from across the globe to support and promote their work to a wider clientele.

“I’m very passionate about small brands, and working to nurture them and help them grow. In many cases we have been store #1 for these brands in the US, and it is exciting to watch them grow,” says Barakat.

December Thieves focuses on individuality, spotlighting pieces that are always very limited in quantity to preserve the originality and uniqueness of each item. Not only are the selections unique, they are also genderless. No garment in the shop is sectioned off or labelled by gender. December Thieves is one of very few stores to embrace this important, yet rare trend in fashion.

experiences into her line of work. She is very fond of Mexico. She describes Mexico as “magical” and explains that there is great talent coming out of the country. Barakat has spent a lot of time working with indigenous people of Mexico, specifically working on sustainability for their brands. She expressed her admiration for each and every artist that she works with.

“Every designer’s journey and story are so exciting for me personally, and I appreciate their willingness to work with me, as well as the symbiotic relationship we have, the way that we work, and everything that goes into it. They know we will represent them in the best light possible.” said Barakat.

This focus differs from the recent surge in the culture of fast fashion, and works to redefine the way people see fashion and their shopping choices. Bakarat explained that she has met a lot of younger people that have told her December Thieves changed their stance on fashion. They have changed their perspective on fast fashion, and are focusing on investing in staple pieces for their wardrobe. Barakat and her styling team work with these customers, suggesting different ways to let these pieces live longer. She chooses garments that can be re-worn in different ways to completely change a look. These items give the customers a sense of individuality, offering them a chance to stand out. Very few people will own these pieces, and that is the beauty of Barakat’s brand.

“They are wearing something limited in production, versus tens of thousands of units circulating worldwide,” said Bakarat.

Barakat strongly values switching things around and keeping things fresh. She is always excited to be able to offer different items to her customers, and she never wants the shop to be predictable. “In my own personal life, I never want things to be stagnant. We encourage people to explore their own personal style and push themselves out of their comfort zone,” said Barakat.

In addition to always keeping things new and different, Barakat’s brand endorses stylistic changes within her customers, as it allows for a wide variety of aesthetics to exist. She described a theme of her brand as “the need to feel individual and different.”

Just like her brand, Barakat’s own fashion is very carefully curated, with lots of statement pieces. “I wear far too much black but I love it. I wear anything with interesting details, big pockets, large drawstrings, hardware, and lots of the same things, styling and layering them in different ways,” Barakat says.

December Thieves carries its vital aspect of individuality into gender non-conformity as well, wanting everyone, regardless of gender, identity, or sexual orientation to feel represented and comfortable in their clothing and accessories.

“We don’t really gender anything. This is important because we want everyone to feel safe, included and welcome in our space. We have had some people tell us it is the only store that they feel safe shopping at,” says Bakarat.

Being both a gender neutral and high fashion brand is a trailblazing effort that is much needed and appreciated. We are fostering a society that is working to open the lens of how we see and appreciate others and our differences.

@decemberthieves; decemberthieves.com