TAdvComboBox Programmatically add the first item

I have an empty TAdvComboBox (advcbxFoc). I need to programmatically insert the first item there - Items.AddObject.
advcbxFoc.Items is nil. The insert attempt, of course, fails. But I also fail

  if not Assigned(Frm.advcbxFoc.Items) then
  Frm.advcbxFoc.Items := TStrings.Create;

I do not understand why. How do I actually do that?

I'm wrong. Just remove it :wink: