Frankie Shop’s ‘Muscle Tee’ Is A £61 Vest Top – So Why Has It Gone Viral?

If you think you're unfamiliar with Frankie Shop, think again. Chances are, it has infiltrated your life without you even realising, such is its appeal on social media. Since launching in 2014, it has become a favourite with fashion's most recognisable influencers, selling its own Frankie Shop-labelled clothes as well as pieces from brands such as Nanushka and Ganni. But it's one item in particular that you may recognise, given its ubiquitous nature at the moment: the 'Eva Muscle Tee', so named in honour of influencer Evangeline Smyrniotaki (@styleheroine), who is partly responsible for the top's existence.

'The tee came about during a conversation with Evangeline, hence why it is called the Eva muscle tee,' explains Gaelle Drevet, Frankie Shop's founder. 'We were both joking about how much we loved strong shoulders and wished we could just add them everywhere, then the conversation quickly moved towards a T-shirt which I thought would feel newer if it was sleeveless. It looks like we basically rolled the sleeves up. Of course, Eva received it first and other influencers started wearing it during fashion week – it just snowballed from there and has been almost a year now.'

Snowballed is right. Not only is every influencer and their dog wearing it (well, almost), it has also sold out and been restocked more times than Drevet can count. This is particularly impressive when you consider that it is, in essence, a plain vest top. Ok, with padded shoulders it's not your average T-shirt, but it just goes to show that truly great wardrobe 'basics' are hard to come by.

'Frankly, no one could have guessed it would become such a huge trend and it obviously shows the power of influencers,' says Drevet. 'But I also think this T-shirt is successful because it appeals to everyone – younger or older women, even men to be honest. It’s versatile; to me it’s like an instant update of your basic tee.'

Indeed, it will go with everything in your wardrobe and is currently available in five different colours. White seems to have been the most popular on social media but all shades are currently sold out, with new stock expected next week. The white style is also available to pre-order.

While the outbreak of Covid-19 forced Frankie Shop to close its businesses, including its online store, it is in the process of taking steps to reopen. 'Sales have definitely been impacted, basically because we couldn’t ship anything,' says Drevet. 'But in the end it’s that same Muscle Tee that has kept us afloat during these difficult times – loyal customers kept ordering it.'

Just last week, Frankie Shop teamed up with Camille Charriere to produce a yellow version of the T-shirt in aid of Red Cross, with 100% of proceeds going to the charity. As Drevet explains: 'It was very important for us to try to give back in these difficult times, we thought about the sunshine chain and that offering the Eva padded tee in a pale yellow would be an instant success. But this collaboration is not just about spending money – we encourage anyone to take part in our sunshine chain by simply posting a photo, an object, anything with yellow on it and we will donate one extra dollar to the Red Cross.'

There are also more variations of the Muscle Tee in the offing – specifically a light grey version and a dress of the same shape. Given the overwhelming success of the previous styles, one can only imagine that these, too, will fly off the virtual shelves as soon as they arrive in stock. So, you'd better keep your eyes peeled...