Retail Intel: Skechers Surpasses 5,000 Stores + More

FN rounds up all the store openings, closings and redesigns happening this month, from throughout the footwear industry. Send your retail news to web@footwearnews.com.

Feb. 15, 2024: Skechers said on Thursday that it has surpassed 5,000 Skechers-branded retail store locations throughout more than 120 countries. Expanding the reach of Skechers shopping destinations currently operating globally, key openings leading up to the milestone have been in Chile, Greece, India, Mexico, South Korea, the United States, and the 5,000th store in Bogotá, Colombia. “Every Skechers store brings valuable engagement with consumers to build an increased awareness for our brand,” Michael Greenberg, president of Skechers, said in a statement. “It started in 1995 with the original Skechers store opening in Manhattan Beach near our corporate offices. From there, we opened our first international store in Japan, the 100th in Times Square, the 3,000th in China and now our 5,000th store in Colombia. Every location offers the same look and feel to carry the Skechers brand with consistency across six continents. With an additional 140 to 160 more Company-owned stores planned this year and hundreds of stores opening annually with our partners, we are on the road to 10,000 Skechers stores.”

Jan. 11, 2024: REI Co-op announced plans to open 10 stores in 2024. Stores that are slated to debut in the spring include Beavercreek, Ohio, and Beaverton, Ore. There are three stores scheduled to open in the summer, including two in formerly occupied retail spaces (Arrowhead Promenade in Glendale, Ariz., and The River in Rancho Mirage, Calif.) and a third in Ithaca, N.Y. And in the fall, REI confirmed it will open in Albany, N.Y., and Tulsa, Okla. As for 2025, REI stated it will open a store in Durango, Colo., in the spring and in St. George, Utah, in the formerly occupied St. George Place in the fall. The stores, according to REI, will offer apparel, gear and expertise for cycling, running, hiking and more, and will feature full-service bike shops. As for the Utah location, REI will also include a ski and snowboard shop.

Dec. 27, 2023: Adidas has expanded its brick-and-mortar footprint in India. The German athletic giant has opened a store in the Urban Square Mall, which is located in Udaipur. The new store, which stocks shoes, sportswear, activewear and more from the brand, consumes 1,278 square feet and was designed in a stadium format. 

Dec. 14, 2023: Revolve has opened a pop-up shop in Aspen, Colo., showcasing selections from both Revolve and Fwrd. This is the first time customers can explore and shop from both sites in one physical store. The store will feature a range of brands, from emerging designers to men’s wear, beauty products, and accessories. In addition, Fwrd Renew will enhance the experience with a unique offering of vintage and rare items.The store is located at 410 E. Hyman Ave and will be open from Dec. 15 to March 17, 2024. Revolve has also announced its exclusive partnership as the fashion and beauty retail partner for The Snow Lodge Après Ski Concert Series this winter season, where the retailer will spearhead the creation of fan experiences.

Nov. 20, 2023: After an extensive renovation, Tod’s has re-opened its flagship at 650 Madison Avenue. With a prime location in NYC for over 20 years, the Tod’s Madison Avenue flagship spans over 2,400-square-feet and features grand 14-feet-tall windows – allowing for sunlight to illuminate the store and reflect off the white travertine floors. The boutique’s design features a sleek and linear décor with interior walls covered in naturally tanned “Vacchetta” leather, a Tod’s signature material.  Panels of Pietra Grigia di Vicenza stone float in front of walls to create a beautifully textured neutral background for Tod’s products to be displayed. Along the windows on 60th street, a double-sided bookcase in mirrored stainless steel and leather showcases and juxtaposes ready to wear, shoes and handbags, using narrow screens in carved travertine tiles and leather creating backgrounds in the vitrines. The Tod’s boutique on Madison Avenue houses men’s and women’s ready to wear, accessories and footwear collections, including Tod’s icons such as the Gommino and Di Bag as well as the new T Timeless collection.

Nov. 20, 2023: Louis Vuitton has opened its newly redesigned and expanded store at Galleria Dallas. Doubling the footprint size, the newly renovated space will offer a suite of Louis Vuitton’s métiers, including men’s and women’s accessories, fragrances, jewelry, leather goods, ready-to-wear, shoes, travel and watches. Louis Vuitton’s historic tradition of hand-crafted customization is prevalent through an on-site artisan who works directly with clients to create custom artwork on hard-sided items and a hot-stamping service which offers clients the opportunity to personalize a variety of leather goods. The façade of the store features a custom built “flower blade’ design concept featuring a series of metal blades with polished edges that are individually constructed to create a composition of the maison’s signature monogram flower. Interior walls will be finished in custom millwork panels or specially selected wallpaper with custom fixtures and curated art and furniture throughout the space, including original artwork by Isadora Capraro. 

Nov. 17, 2023: Loewe has opened its first store in Texas. Located in Highland Park Village in Dallas, the store hosts a full offering of women’s ready-to-wear and accessories. Taking its cue from creative director Jonathan Anderson’s Casa Loewe concept, the nearly 1,600-square-foot space features blue and white enameled tiles that grace the storefront and internal walls. Handmade and enameled in Spain, no two tiles are alike – their artisanal irregularities yielding a variety of hues and textures. Additional tactility is found in the form of Loewe’s signature podiums, crafted from a variety of materials including tiles and mesmerizing Viola and green Calcutta marble. Angular Utrecht chairs designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld sit alongside a soft leather bench, while antique Spanish vessels nod to the brand’s longstanding heritage. Underfoot handwoven Spanish rugs feature designs by textile artist and frequent Loewe collaborator John Allen, depicting abstracted pastoral scenes. Hand-picked pieces from Loewe’s anthology of art, sculpture and craft are displayed throughout the store. Contemporary American artist Walter Price’s Starry Sky (2022) is darkly atmospheric, acrylic gesso swirling across wood. Nearby a piece from the 2023 Loewe Craft Prize finalist Claire Lindner, Buisson nº2, hovers, its silhouette characteristic of the French ceramicist’s bulbous organic forms.

Nov. 9, 2023: Gabriela Hearst has opened its first store and flagship on the West Coast at the Beverly Wilshire, in Beverly Hills, Calif. The store is located along the street front of the prominent hotel, at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Rodeo Drive. Gabriela Hearst collaborated with architect Foster + Partners led by Norman Foster to design the store, the second one designed for the brand by the practice following the London flagship. What’s more, the brand commissioned designer-makers Benji Gavron and Antoine Dumas of Gavron Dumas Studio to design a collection of bespoke furniture. This furniture collection, called Nomad, is a culmination of a year’s-long work, which is featured in Gabriela Hearst’s retail spaces in South Korea as well as in past retail installations in Paris, Chicago and New York. The flagship will sell the entire range of Gabriela Hearst men’s and women’s ready-to-wear collections, fine merino wool and cashmere knitwear, footwear, accessories and handbags. The location will be the exclusive retailer for Gabriela Hearst handbag collection on the West Coast, including the Nina, the Demi, the Diana, and the Baez among others.

Oct. 19, 2023: A private cocktail party was held on Wednesday hosted by Lauren Hutton and Dianna Agron in celebration of the Giorgio Armani in-store boutique re-opening at Bergdorf Goodman, marking a relationship between the two companies that dates to the eighties. Guests from the entertainment, fashion, society, arts, and business worlds gathered with top clients at the Giorgio Armani Boutique at Bergdorf Goodman for the celebration. The revamped boutique, previously on the second floor, is now located on the fourth floor and features the ready-to-wear women’s collections, including the main clothing line, accessories and made-to-order services, as well as an exclusive selection of vintage garments from its newly developed Archivio range. “The history of Bergdorf Goodman makes it utterly unique and a crucial part of New York City in the collective imagination,” Armani said. “To me personally, it represents an important milestone: the first appearance of my creations in the United States and the beginning of the international success of Armani style. This new in-store boutique further reinforces an excellent longstanding relationship. It is a sign of new energy and loyalty, which I value deeply.”

Oct. 16, 2023: Palm Angels has opened a new store in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood. Located at 70 Greene Street, the new 2,300-square-foot store marks the third U.S. boutique for the Milan-based streetwear brand. The two-story space was designed by Gilles & Boissier and aims to capture the brand’s two founding pillars, the rigorous design and the poetic rawness of suburban environments, which serve as a humus for youth cultures. From the entrance, a striped pavement in black and grey marble, offers directions and invites to self-explore the interiors, the cabinet area in brown marble, the racks, shelves and counter in calamine with its industrial look interacting with niches and fitting room covered by raffia and finding a counterpoint with the succession of pink suspended ceiling. A black marble stair leads to the basement where the continuity of materials finds different functions and expression: the shelves are in raffia with black wood profiles, the cash area is panted in pink, while the fitting rooms are covered with palm tree pattern wallpapers.

Oct. 14, 2023: Amiri has opened a new story inside The Galleria luxury shopping center in Houston, Texas. Led by founder and creative director Mike Amiri, in partnership with design firm Two One Two Design, the 4,300 square-foot space is constructed around an immersive shopping experience, showcasing Amiri’s menswear, womenswear, childrenswear and accessories through an interactive, craft-centric environment. The Houston location employs familiar touchpoints found across all the brand’s retail locations, like a dynamic interplay of textures and a minimalist and inviting atmosphere punctuated by natural materials including natural oak, precious travertine and custom furniture. Highlighting Amiri’s artistic sensibility, the store exhibits site-specific artworks by U.S. artist and friend of the house, California-born artist Jason Revok, displaying pieces from his Instrument Frame Drag and Spirograph series.

Oct. 11, 2023: Banana Republic has opened its new flagship store at 152 Geary Street in San Francisco.  The two-floor, 3,500-square-foot flagship experience in the heart of the city’s historic Union Square shopping district celebrates the brand’s San Francisco heritage and is a natural next step in Banana Republic’s retail transformation. Stepping inside the new BR Geary Street store, guests will discover a dynamic selection of ready-to-wear, accessories, and an assortment of the newly launched BR Home, including seating, dining furniture and a lighting installation that complements the apparel collections and empowers self-expression in modern living. “Our new flagship embodies exceptional quality, timeless design, and versatile styling that supports our consumer’s journey for a life well lived by offering them curated products that are an integral part of their daily lives, representing a new way to outfit themselves for the world,” Sandra Stangl, president and CEO of Banana Republic, said in a statement.

Oct. 9, 2023: Sorel Footwear will host its first-ever pop-up shop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to celebrate the brand’s decades-long heritage. Honoring 50 years of the iconic Sorel Caribou silhouette, the pop-up will highlight a small run of key styles from the brand’s fall 2023 collection – the Caribou Royal, Caribou Clog, Caribou X Boot Lace, Kinetic Impact Puffy Zip, Joan Now Chelsea and ONA III Classic – available in the signature “Optimized Orange” colorway. The bold color scheme carries throughout the pop-up space, which will be open daily from Oct. 13 to Oct. 22, 2023. Consumers will be able to try on, shop and customize Sorel styles at an onsite charm and lace bar while exploring the space. Putting the brand’s heritage and evolution on display, the pop-up will also include a custom augmented reality experience for consumers to interact and engage with key styles. To further celebrate this landmark moment, Sorel has partnered with multi-hyphenate talent Chlöe Bailey on a limited-edition collaboration boot style that will be available exclusively at the Brooklyn pop-up.

Oct. 3, 2023: The Good Feet Store hit a major milestone. The retail franchise, which specializes in fitted arch support systems, has opened its 250th brick-and-mortar location, at 4400 Hwy 6 #200 in College Station, Texas. The store is operated by The Watermans, a seasoned franchisee group of Good Feet since 2010. This opening marks The Watermans’ 10th location in Texas, with additional stores in Allen, Alliance, Arlington, Fort Worth, Plano, Rockwall, Southlake, Temple and Waco. The Good Feet Store has been bullish on brick-and-mortar despite the consumer shift to online. In a statement, the company said that by year-end it will have opened 30 new doors in 2023, with 30 more expected next year, resulting in more than 300 stores by the end of 2024. 

Oct. 2, 2023: StockX is partnering with Equinox to host a month-long pop-up store in New York City. Equinox’s Bond Street location will sell footwear and apparel from brands popular on StockX including Nike, Adidas, New Balance, Off-White, and more. Also available will be a range of offerings from brands Equinox already includes in its own stores, such as And Wander, Family First, Rains, Presidents, and more. Only Equinox members will be to shop the pop-up as it runs from Oct. 2 through Oct. 31. 

The New York City popup comes as part of the Equinox Circle program, which curates luxury brands in the fashion and travel industries as well as others.

“StockX joined Equinox Circle earlier this year, a collective of partnership benefits curated for Equinox Members. With plans for a concept store at our Bond Street location already in the works, adding a StockX pop-up element seemed both necessary and natural,” Annie Walters, Equinox’s vice president of retail, told WWD in an exclusive announcement for the pop-up. “All the pieces came together, and the synergy of our apparel offering complimented by an assortment of StockX products organically suited both the Bond Street space and their member community.” 

Sept. 25, 2023: Balenciaga has opened a new store in Beverly Hills, Calif., close to its existing Rodeo Drive location, which reopened in 2019. This second store will focus on women’s ready-to-wear, shoes, bags, accessories, eyewear, and jewelry, converting the nearby location into a menswear-focused store. Located at 418 N. Rodeo Drive, the new site is even more sizeable than its recently expanded sister store, its two levels amounting to a combined 5,900 square feet. Each floor is viewable from the street, via large glass panels that showcase the newest Balenciaga collections, and custom displays. The store’s design follows the brand’s experiential Raw Architecture concept and will feature a row of naturalistic mannequin arms in signature grey microsuede are mounted on a matching backdrop, posed to demonstrate the accessibility and tactility of Balenciaga’s new Monaco Bag line.

Sept. 19, 2023: Foot Locker has opened the doors to its newest community store in Chicago, Ill. Located at the Chatham Ridge Shopping Center at 112 W 87th Street, the 9,695-square-foot store features footwear, apparel and accessories from brands like Nike, Adidas, New Balance, Hoka and more. According to the retailer, the store will offer exclusive, community-centric programming by partnering with local organizations, artists and community members for ongoing events to further support its new community. The exterior of the store features a mural titled, “Love Yours” which was created by local artist Eddie “Edo” White. The store is a celebration of the South Side community and Foot Locker hosted a two-day grand opening to celebrate the new store. The festivities kicked off with a ribbon cutting ceremony followed by crep cleaning services, meal ticket giveaways, on-site sneaker customization, refreshments, live music by a DJ and more activities. Attendees received a gift with any Nike Air Force 1 purchase and three community groups were surprised with a free pair of Nike Air Force 1 sneakers that would be personalized by Shaun Redwell, shoe customizer and WNBA host.

Sept. 14, 2023: Italian specialty retailer 10 Corso Como is slated to pop-up inside Milano Centrale train station during the city’s upcoming fashion week. Located in the historic setting of the Galleria dei Mosaici, on the platform level, the shop will open on Sept. 10 and will remain open through the end of October. Accessories, shopping bags, handbags, trousseau, and candles made in collaboration with Italian and international workshops, along with Italian pasta and rice, Ligurian olive oil and Tuscan gin, in gift boxes made unmistakable by the black and white graphics, will be available for travelers from all over the world. The new 10 Corso Como Milan pop-up is part of series of traveling retail destinations the company started at Forte dei Marmi in Tuscany last year. The concept then traveled to Forte Village in Sardinia earlier this year. It’s the starting point of the new 10 Corso Como travel retail division that will focus on new retail projects around the world.

Sept. 14, 2023: Thom Browne is the latest designer to take over Nordstrom NYC’s Center Stage and Broadway Bar. From now into the beginning of October, Nordstrom NYC will celebrate Thom Browne fall 2023 with the launch of a dedicated Center Stage installation, a redesigned Broadway Bar featuring a custom menu, and made-to-measure program. The Center Stage assortment will consist of women’s ready-to-wear, shoes and accessories, from outerwear to mix and match sportscoats, trousers and skirts, to cardigans, sweaters and woven tops. Alongside the ready-to-wear, Thom Browne@Nordstrom will also feature boots, loafers, heels, sneakers, handbags, tights and socks, to complete the sharp tailoring look. Prices range from $120 – $6,950. Across the street at the Nordstrom Men’s Store, customers can find the brand’s men’s assortment. The installation features a grey house, tying to the central motif of the brand’s fall 2023 image campaign, transporting visitors to “the end” where the land meets the sea. In addition to the pop-up shop, Thom Browne and Nordstrom will be hosting men’s and women’s made-to-measure events in Seattle (Sept. 14 – Sept. 17) and NYC (Sept. 29 – Oct. 1).

Sept. 13, 2023: A day after announcing it will expand in Michigan, Ross Dress for Less revealed it will open a new store in El Paso, Texas, on Oct. 7. The store will span 25,500 square feet and will be located in the Sierra Court Shopping Center. Ross Dress for Less, along with its DD’s Discounts banner, operate more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores.

Sept. 12, 2023: Academy Sports + Outdoors will open its first store in Brenham, Texas, with grand opening festivities scheduled for Sept. 15 -17. The new door is located at 1041 Nolan St. and spans 63,000 square feet. Inside, Academy will stock shoes, apparel and sports and outdoors equipment from brands including Nike, Adidas, Brooks, The North Face and more. It will also dell products from its private label brands Magellan Outdoors, Freely, R.O.W., BCG, H2OX, Redfield and Mosaic. What’s more the Academy store will offer free services such as grill and bike assembly, scope mounting, bore sighting and more, and customers can also purchase hunting and fishing licenses. Over the grand opening weekend, Food Network star and former pro football player Eddie Jackson will make an appearance, and the Brenham High School cheer team, drumline and mascot will be attendance as well. There will also be exclusive deals and giveaways. This location is the fourth store the retailer has opened in 2023. Academy confirmed it will aim to open 120 to 140 new stores by the end of 2027.

Sept. 12, 2023: Ross Dress for Less is expanding its footprint in Michigan with a new store in Jackson. The location, which is scheduled to open on Oct. 7, spans 21,000 square feet. The store is located in the Jackson Crossing Shopping Center.

Sept. 1, 2023: REI Co-op has announced that it will open a store in Ithaca, N.Y., in summer 2024. The store will consume 17,000 square feet of real estate at 742 South Meadow St., and serve the 23,600 REI members in Ithaca. The upcoming store in New York — a state with 708,000 REI members — will include a full-service bike shop and a ski and snowboard shop staffed by certified mechanics, and will offer apparel and gear for camping, running, hiking, paddling and more. The closest REI store to Ithica is in Rochester, which is 92 miles away.

Aug. 24, 2023: H&M said on Thursday that it is now planning to gradually reopen most of its stores in Ukraine starting in November. As H&M continues to monitor developments in the country, the company added that preparations are being made to reopen the majority of its stores where possible. This move comes after the fast-fashion retailer temporarily closed all of its Ukrainian locations in February 2022 due to the Russian invasion. H&M Group said in a statement on Thursday that it is in contact with local stakeholders in terms of how to best support the country and local communities as they look to rebuild. In addition to previous donations supporting the people in Ukraine, the company said it will partner with organizations on the ground and engage in relief and rebuilding programs.

Aug. 24, 2023: Ross Dress for Less will soon open new stores in Pennsylvania and Washington. The retailer announced it will open a location in North Wales, Penn., spanning 20,500 square feet in the Montgomery Square Shopping Center. Ross is also set to open a store in Yakima, Wash., consuming 23,000 square feet of space in the Gateway Center Shopping Center. Both stores will debut on Oct. 7. 

Aug. 21, 2023: Ariat International is opening an Ariat Work retail store in Northridge, Calif., on Aug. 24. The store is intended to cater to the area’s significant number of construction workers, landscapers and other skilled workers. Located at 9044 Corbin Ave., the shop will stock Ariat’s collection of workwear products, which aim to deliver comfort, stability, durability and protection in the field.

Aug. 10, 2023: Canadian footwear brand La Canadienne has opened its newest in-mall store in Carrefour Laval in Quebec. The grand opening marks the debut of a unique store concept that encompasses elements of existing store layout and design, with an emphasis on showcasing the brand’s trademarked City Dry footwear collection. With the expansion into Carrefour Laval, the largest enclosed shopping center in the Montreal area, the La Canadienne team is “thrilled” to begin to connect with local consumers in this new Quebec retail location. “Our brand is over 35 years young, but there is so much more opportunity to tell our story,” Nicholas Niro, CEO of La Canadienne, said in a statement. “Aside from marketing, physical retail is a key part of building brand awareness as it allows us to showcase our complete lifestyle collection and highlight our City Dry technology. With that said, we continue to be selective with our retail expansion and consider high visibility locations. Carrefour Laval is one of those and we look forward to seeing our existing and meeting new customers in this center.” –

Aug. 7, 2023: Brioni has opened its first store in Texas. Located at 30 Highland Park Village, the boutique offers ready-to-wear and accessories collections as well as the exclusive Bespoke service. The new shop echoes the store concept of Brioni locations worldwide: local inspirations such as the colour palette are reflected in the choice of MITA designs (Manifattura Italiana Tappeti Artistici ) which feature bold midcentury motifs. The carpet at the entrance is titled Il carretto delle stoffe (‘Fabrics cart’) as a reference to sartorial craftmanship. A central wall tapestry, titled Il carretto della frutta (‘Fruit cart’), also an original MITA design, divides the space into various atmospheres for the clients to explore. The store is further completed with vintage 20th century Italian design pieces, for a truly unique experience. The Dallas boutique is conceived as a sartorial Atelier as well as a home away from home, where clients can enjoy dedicated one to one service and superior tailoring expertise in a warm Italian atmosphere.

Aug. 7, 2023: REI Co-op is expanding its brick-and-mortar footprint in spring 2024 with a store in Beaverton, Ore. The store, located at 2780 SW Cedar Hills Blvd., will consume 39,512 square feet of real estate in the Walker Center. Inside the store, there will be a full-service bike shop, a ski and snowboard shop, and consumers can use REI’s curbside pickup feature, as well as buy online-pick up in store. REI confirmed in a statement that it has more than 303,000 members of the co-op in the market, and there are 936,000 members total in Oregon.

Aug. 4, 2023: Simkhai has opened its first Texas store in Dallas’ buzzing shopping destination, Highland Park Village. It is the first permanent space for the American ready-to-wear brand in Texas. Following the success of the brand’s yearlong pop up at Market Highland Park, Simkhai has established a presence with the local community, making for a timely store opening for the standalone space. Simkhai will carry its newest collections including pre-fall and fall as well as shoes and handbags. The 700 square-foot store was designed with Atra Form Interior Design Studio, and features an open floor plan with clean, natural shapes and textures that incorporate Simkhai’s new visual retail language. In line with the brand’s retail rollout plans for 2023, Simkhai will open a store in Beverly Hills later this year with many more stores on calendar for 2024 to add to its portfolio of retail in Los Angeles, SoHo, and Southampton.

Aug. 1, 2023: Loewe has opened a new store in East Hampton, N.Y. The permanent store, located at 20 Main Street, draws on creative director Jonathan Anderson’s Casa Loewe store concept where art, craft and fashion intertwine. The 3,000-square-foot boutique features the full range of women’s ready-to-wear, bags, small leather goods, shoes, jewelry, home scents and sunglasses. Men’s will be added in November. The store highlights signature Loewe design details while introducing new, reusable elements. Taking inspiration from its breezy coastal surroundings, the East Hampton store melds the relaxed and the refined. Hand-glazed Spanish tiles grace the interior, their warmth and texture offset by cool expanses of concrete. Created with sustainability in mind, the store also features a modular system from Molo Design – intricate 100 percent recyclable paper soft blocks that can be stretched, stacked, and arranged to create mesmerizing displays and shelving surfaces. Further flashes of color come from bespoke rugs, handwoven from natural fibers by Colombian women artisans, and a series of angular Utrecht armchairs designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld and upholstered in fresh fabrics. Loewe’s black iron martini tables and ceramic podiums complete the atmosphere.

July 25, 2023: Academy Sports + Outdoors is scheduled to open its first location in Fredericksburg, Va., in the fall. The store, which will be Academy’s second in Virginia, will span 77,000 square feet. The store will offer several options to make the shopping experience convenient, such as buy online pick-up in store service and free shipping on most online orders over $25. Also, Academy explained there will be a number of in-store services offered, including free assembly on grills and bikes, scope mounting, bore sighting, line winding/spooling and the ability to purchase hunting and fishing licenses. The store will carry a variety of sports and outdoor products, including an array of athletic and casual shoes, clothing and sports and outdoors equipment. The brand mix includes Nike, Adidas, The North Face, Under Armour, Columbia and more. It will also stock its private label brands Magellan Outdoors, Freely, R.O.W., BCG, H2OX, Mosaic, O’Rageous and Redfield. The retailer said in s statement that it is expected to bring 60 new jobs to the community. This is part of Academy’s ongoing expansion plans, which includes a target of 13-15 stores this year, and 120-140 by the end of 2027.

July 19, 2023: The House of LR&C co-founder and Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson celebrated the opening of his fashion company’s newest physical retail location at Denver International Airport on Tuesday, July 18, marking the brand’s first-ever airport retail store in an exclusive travel retail partnership with Hudson, a Dufry AG company. Russell celebrated the official opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony alongside The House of LR&C’s co-CEO, Janelle Shiplett, and Denver Airport CEO, Phil Washington, as well as Hudson executives. Guests were able to shop the store’s assortment of menswear from the company’s Good Man Brand. The shop was designed with the goal of making shopping for sustainable fashion easier, more experiential, and better for the planet and its people all while offering on-the-move customers their favorite elevated essentials for travel and beyond. The store’s assortment features some of the brand’s best-selling shirts, pants, joggers, and footwear collection including Italian-made leather sneakers.

July 18, 2023: Academy Sports and Outdoors said on Tuesday that it will open two locations in Central Texas this fall in the cities of Brenham and Kyle. The Brenham store will stand at over 63,000 square feet, and the Kyle store will be approximately 56,000 square feet. Both stores will offer athletic and casual shoes, sports and outdoors equipment, and clothing from brands like Nike, Adidas, The North Face, Under Armour, Columbia, Yeti, Carhartt, Burlebo, Chubbies, Traeger and more. “As a homegrown Texas brand, we are thrilled to offer our loyal customers two new and convenient locations in the Brenham and Kyle communities,” Sam Johnson, Academy Sports + Outdoors’ EVP of retail operations, said in a statement. “Academy is focused on providing the best service, experience, and value to help customers in Central Texas pursue the activities that they love and make new memories, on any budget.” Academy is on track to open 13 to 15 stores this year, with the goal of opening a total of 120 to 140 new stores by the end of 2027.

July 17, 2023: It was a honky-tonk grand opening for Freebird Stores in Downtown Music City to celebrate its nationwide retail footprint expansion. Located at 150 2nd Avenue in Nasville, this new store marks the retailer’s 19th location across the US, taking over the old B.B. King’s venue. As the first-ever Freebird Honky-Tonk-style boot store, the location features local bands and established artists seven days a week. A Denver staple since 2009, the leather company offers a wide array of rustic-inspired styles, including men’s and women’s boots, baby shoes, hats, accessories, and bags. To celebrate the opening, the footwear company hosted a unique fashion and music VIP experience for local industry professionals, artists, fashion stylists, and influencers in June. The special musical guest for the evening was rising country singer-songwriter Laci Kaye Booth. The grand opening party also featured free boot giveaways every 15 minutes, live music on the Freebird stage, signature cocktails served in the full bar, and a grand prize winner of Freebird boots for a year. 

July 17, 2023: With the opening of the 2023 summer season, Palm Angels has landed with a free-standing store on the Greek island of Mykonos. Located in the center of the chora, at 6 Enoplon Dinameon, Palm Angels’ newest store opened in partnership with Simple Caracters Group. The new boutique has an “alley-like” structure, with two deep rooms in sequence, a feature due to the particular architecture of the place. Two large windows and the wide glass door overlooking the street give access to natural light, and the store’s particular perspective, a corner with defined volumes and subtle decoration, immediately draws the eye. The white plaster, one of the visual references of Greece, a symbol of the Mediterranean Sea, of integrity and light, has been kept in the exterior and interior, so that the store blends harmoniously into its context, leaving the interior free to express the brand’s identity. In addition to all Palm Angels collections, the store will feature a limited-edition capsule dedicated to the island and available only in Mykonos.

July 13, 2023: Diesel has opened a new store in Paris. Located at 223 Rue Saint-Honoré, the new store represents the brand’s fashion and design attitude under the creative direction of Glenn Martens. The store’s decorative anchor is inspired by billboards celebrating vintage Diesel advertisements, like those that ran along fabled American highways like Route 66. To bring the raw spirit of the road inside, the walls are covered in riveted raw steel panels, as if billboards had been broken down, repurposed and reversed. The 1DR bags and capsules are displayed an immersive, Instagrammable room, where peel-off billboard walls give a multilayered aura of nostalgia and newness. The Red Room, a bold monochromatic chamber surrounded by lacquered walls in all-over Diesel red, is devoted to the denim collection. A red staircase and elevator bank lead upstairs, where the mood changes. Textural popcorn stucco walls and exposed ceilings with suspended light boxes and windows with horizontal blinds evoke a minimalistic studio space for men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, shoes and bags.

July 10, 2023: Neiman Marcus has opened Schiaparelli‘s first West Coast location inside the retailer’s Beverly Hills store. The permanent boutique is a continuation of Neiman Marcus Group’s U.S. exclusive, which includes dedicated presence at Neiman Marcus’ flagship in downtown Dallas and Bergdorf Goodman in New York City. The new boutique is designed by Schiaparelli creative director Daniel Roseberry in collaboration with architect Daniel Romualdez. The second-floor shop embodies the Schiaparelli aesthetic with surrealist and whimsical details. Evoking the iconic Place Vendôme atelier, it takes inspiration from the brand’s rich creative heritage with references to Jean Michel Frank, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali and other culturally defining Schiaparelli collaborators. The boutique is outfitted with a wide selection of ready-to-wear, evening wear, handbags, leather goods, jewelry, and accessories. “Our presence in Los Angeles has really exploded thanks to the amazing moments we’ve had working hand in hand with L.A. based celebrities and stylists,” Roseberry said in a statement. “I am thrilled that Schiaparelli’s ready-to-wear will now be available to more people who love the brand and want to be a part of what we are building here.”

July 6, 2023: John Elliott has opened his first international flagship. Located at 83 Yorkville Ave in Toronto, the store serves as the brand’s sixth physical shop. Spanning 2,407 square-feet of retail space, this location extends the design language architect Stephan Wiemer developed for the brand’s Melrose Ave, Miami, SoHo, Madison Ave, and Aspen locations, refining the use of minimalist and utilitarian construction for a sophisticated presentation of men’s and women’s collections. Product represents the young luxury brand’s full range, including exquisite artisanal leather pieces, Japanese denim, premium Los Angeles-made sportswear, and an extensive Italian-produced footwear collection. An assortment of fine jewelry, developed in collaboration with cult Japanese brand M.A.R.S, remains present.

July 3, 2023: Zegna has opened a new temporary store in East Hampton, N.Y. Located at 50 Newtown Lane, the 85 square-meter (915 square-foot) store “perfectly epitomizes” the resetting of Zegna’s identity under the artistic direction of Alessandro Sartori, the Italian luxury label said in a statement on Monday. The store’s ‘marine resort’ concept interprets the aesthetic of Zegna’s flagships with sand-colored resin floors that blend into white walls — creating a light ambiance. The store’s interior is complemented with Mariantonia Urru carpets, which are unique to this location and handcrafted exclusively for Zegna on the Italian island of Sardinia. The Newtown Lane Zegna store will showcase the brand’s latest menswear collections, including luxury leisurewear staples such as the Triple Stitch shoe and overshirt.

July 3, 2023: Isabel Marant opened its first store in the Hamptons late last month. Located at 66 Newton Lane, in East Hampton, N.Y., the 84 square-meter (904 square-foot) space offers a unique design aesthetic – drawing inspiration from the 1970s French experimental movement. The store concept has been developed by Marant’s studio in close interaction with a group of talented young European designers and artisans. All sharing the same passion for contrasts, tensions and subtle imperfection creating a specific approach of an intimate luxury. The store showcases a variety of furniture pieces, including jewelry and sunglasses display and wooden podiums designed by Rotterdam designer Jonas Lutz, concrete and ceramic planters by Parisian artist Kalou Dubus as well as ceramic glazed podiums developed by the Spanish studio Apparatu. The designer, pursuing her international expansion, has now 80 stores across the globe. This new location houses the main line for women and a selection of Isabel Marant Etoile collection, and accessories.

June 30, 2023: Fendi has opened its latest boutique – this time in Puerto Banus in Spain. Located in the city’s renowned fashion district of Costa del Sol, the 403 square-meter (4,337 square-foot) shop is organized into three levels, where men’s and women’s full collections can be admired in a unique atmosphere. To celebrate the opening of the Puerto Banus boutique and the launch of the Astrology Summer capsule 2023 collection, Fendi has taken over the Puente Romano Resort, an Andalusian village-style resort where Fendi personalized the Chiringuito area and opened a pop-up store nearby presenting the key items of the new collection together with the main icons of the brand.

June 30, 2023: Ross Dress for Less, which has recently announced several store openings, has stated it will soon expand in Michigan. On July 15, the retailer will open a store in Grandville in the Grandville Marketplace Shopping Center. The store will consume 20,000 square feet of real estate at the corner of Rivertown Parkway and Canal Avenue Southwest. The company said in a statement that Ross Dress for Less, together with its DD’s Discounts banner, operate more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 40 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.

June 29, 2023: Burberry has reopened its recently renovated Fifth Avenue flagship store in New York City. Located at 693 Fifth Ave., the multilevel store features the brand’s creative retail evolution under creative director Daniel Lee, and offers a selection of womenswear, menswear, shoes and accessories with a stronger focus on leather goods. Presenting a stripped-back aesthetic designed to spotlight key Burberry products, the combination of concrete floors and smooth countertops is complemented by bespoke wooden sculptures created by local artist Casey McCafferty. These sculptures punctuate the space, serving as a visual representation of the brand’s commitment to craftsmanship. Store windows will showcase stacks of summer-inspired Burberry inflatable rings, each crafted in the brand’s new pear colorway, a seasonal take on its Burberry Check.

June 29, 2023: REI Co-op will expand its brick-and-mortar footprint in spring 2025 with a 22,000-sq.-ft. store in Durango, Colo. The new door, a newly constructed building that sits at the corner of Turner Drive and U.S. Highway 550, will offer apparel, gear and expertise for several activities including cycling, running, hiking, paddling, snowsports and more. Also, the store will feature a full-service bike, ski and snowboard shop, and will offer consumers its buy online-pick up in store option and curbside pickup. In terms of membership, REI confirmed via statement that it has roughly 9,000 members specifically in Durango and 2.2 million members in Colorado.

June 27, 2023: Next month, Ross Dress for Less will open a new store in Mableton, Ga. The store, which consumes 25,500 square feet of retail space in The Village at Mableton Shopping Center, will open on July 15. Ross Dress for Less, combined with its DD’s Discounts banner, confirmed in a statement that it operates more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 40 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.

June 26, 2023: Texas-native clothing brand and premium athletic and lifestyle footwear retailer Centre has opened a new store in the Bishop Arts District of Dallas. This is the third brick-and-mortar location for Centre in the DFW metroplex and largest to date, occupying over 4,000 square feet of retail and hybrid space across two levels at 250 North Bishop Ave. “The authenticity of this neighborhood is truly admirable,” expressed co-owner Nick Sunderman in a statement. “Bishop Arts is a seamless fit for Centre, and we’re thrilled to call it home.” In addition to the premium brands that Centre enthusiasts love, the new location also features exclusive Bishop Arts merchandise from Centre’s in-house label. High-end labels new to Centre are highlighted such as Les Tien and Cotton Citizen. Moreover, there are plans to introduce additional brands that extend beyond sportswear. Established in 2007 in Dallas, Centre expanded in 2019 with a second location in Fort Worth.

June 26, 2023: Morjas has opened its very first physical store. Located in the heart of Stockholm, Casa Morjas is a collaboration between founder and creative director, Henrik Berg, and architect Victor Ingmo Magnergård. Berg and Magnergård share Spanish-Swedish heritage, which proved crucial in realizing their vision for the new store. Inside the 92 square-meter store, visitors will enter a space defined by rich colors and contrasting elemental textures – marble, travertine, and wood. The first third of the store is the Living Room, featuring arched wall cut-outs and custom-designed furniture, which create an inviting and sophisticated atmosphere to shop. The next room is the Gallery, which places the product on a pedestal like a piece of art. The room’s centerpiece is a large custom red marble table, complementing the dark wood-paneled walls. And in the back is Café Morjas, a space designed to instill a sense of community and order some of the city’s best coffee and pan con tomate. “Casa Morjas is the physical reflection of our Spanish-Swedish roots. It’s a place where contrasts come to life and represent who we are,” Berg said in a statement. “Influences from the Mediterranean meet sharp and almost futuristic elements which hint to the Scandinavian aesthetic.”

June 26, 2023: Ross Dress for Less is expanding in Michigan. Its new Benton Harbor store, which consumes 20,000 square feet of retail space, will open on July 15. The store is located in the Fairplain Plaza Shopping Center. Ross Dress for Less, along with its DD’s Discounts banner, have more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 40 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.

June 21, 2023: Academy Sports and Outdoors is expanding in the Greater Indianapolis area with two stores that will debut in the fall. The stores will be located in Westfield-Carmel, which spans 75,000 square feet, and an Avon door that consumes 60,000 square feet of retail space. Academy said in a statement that it plans to open 13 to 15 stores this year, bringing its total to 120 to 140 by the end of 2027. The stores will offer options for consumers to make the shopping experience more convenient, such as buy-online pick up in-store and free shipping on most online orders more than $25. The two locations, according to Academy Sports and Outdoors, are expected to bring a combined 120 new jobs to the communities. What’s more, the retailer has signed a multiyear deal to serve as a partner of the Indianapolis Colts, and with the partnership, the two will collaborate on fun community events, social media, digital content and more “to enhance both the fan and customer experience.”

June 21, 2023: Next month, Ross Dress for Less will open a new store in Coralville, Iowa. The 22,000 sq.-ft. location., which sits in the Coral North Shopping Center, will debut on July 15. Ross Dress for Less and DD’s Discounts, which is a division of Ross Stores, have more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores across 40 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.

June 21, 2023: DD’s Discounts is expanding in Phoenix. The new store for the retailer, which is a division of Ross Stores, will open on June 24. The store spans 19,000 square feet and is located in the El Monte Plaza Shopping Center, which is at the southeast corner of North 19th Avenue and West Dunlap Avenue.

May 26, 2023: After 30 years in its original SoHo space, Steve Madden has relocated its store in the downtown Manhattan neighborhood. The new 1,430-square-foot store, located at 494 Broadway, officially opened in April and offers a newly assembled and comprehensive selection of Steve Madden-owned brands and merchandise. Select styles will be available exclusively in-store prior to their online release, with shoes starting at $49.95. Each design element of the store was chosen to honor the original SoHo location, which also served as an office and inspiration space across the company’s history. The vintage Steve Madden SoHo store signs from 1993 contrast with added digital screens that play videos from TikTok and other social platforms. Fixtures and seating were hand-selected and custom-made in Italy, while authentic construction markings from the building’s conception were left on the wall. “There are so many memories that revolve around SoHo and Steve Madden,” Steve Madden, founder, creative & design chief, said in a statement. “The new store is a perfect combination of the past and future which is undeniably Steve Madden. I can’t wait for our customers to enjoy it.”

May 17, 2023: Presentedby has brought its elevated consignment sneaker and streetwear format to Polanco, Mexico City. The company’s new store, which was designed by its architecture partners External Reference, will stock limited-edition and exclusive sneakers and streetwear. Inside, consumers will discover an experiential space, dubbed the Pincave, which Presentedby said in a statement was influenced by the local region’s symbolic motifs, paying homage to the local culture. Presentedby has stores in London, Paris and across the Middle East.

May 15, 2023: Pacsun has opened its second PS Reserve outpost in Southern California. The space, created in partnership with Magnolia Park owner and CEO Miki Guerra and Pacsun, is an in-store resale platform for streetwear apparel, sneakers and accessories. The first wall in-store installment of PS Reserve opened in December 2022 at Pacsun’s Fashion Island location. “Growing up in the San Fernando Valley it is a childhood dream come true to see my family and company name (Mag Park) in bright lights inside of Pacsun. I’m extremely excited to continue to tell stories through my headwear design process, as well as curating an in store experience in an amazing city like Glendale, Calif.,” said Guerra.

May 12, 2023: Prada has reopened its newly redesigned East Hampton, N.Y. store. Located 2 Newtown Lane, the 1,600-square-foot store features an ivory-and-vivid blue striped carpet and walls with the same motif. A neon sign illuminates the surfaces, providing a new interpretation of the Prada triangle logo, while larch wood wall étagères and tables exhibit and highlight the merchandise. The store which houses the men’s and women’s collections of ready-to-wear, leather goods, footwear and accessories will also present a special collection and exclusive product.

May 11, 2023: Esprit has opened a new long-term pop-up in New York City. Located at 130 Greene Street, the new 3,000-square-foot store features the brand’s signature Memphis Design terrazzo patterns, a curation of vintage items and archival catalogs, and new campaign imagery displayed throughout. Archival materials from the 1980s and 1990s pay homage to the origins of Esprit’s playful aesthetic, and mannequins dressed in vintage looks aim to inspire shoppers, past and present. The product range includes a selection of new summer 2023 styles alongside vintage pieces. This new pop-up is part of the expansion plan that Esprit is implementing across North America throughout this year and into 2024. Esprit first returned to the U.S. in fall 2022 with a pop up in Los Angeles and plans to open another short-term pop up in Los Angeles this summer. Permanent retail locations are planned to open in New York City, Los Angeles, and Vancouver in late 2023. Esprit is set to officially relaunch globally this fall.

May 10, 2023: Palm Angels has opened its first Paris flagship, two months after the brand teased the move during its fall/winter 2023 show in March. Located in Rue Saint-Honoré 217, the store was designed by Studio Henry and combines contrasting dualities – streetwear mixed with classic Parisian architecture. The fluid spaces in the store house a lounge, a botanical corner – created in collaboration with This Humid House – and a retail space that sells the men’s, women’s, accessories, and kids’ collections from Palm Angels. Design elements of the store include references to skate park ramps, rough finishes, wood paneling, wallpaper with palm motifs, velvets and fuchsia metallic elements that culminated in the central marble staircase inspired by the monumental stairs at Opera Garnier.

May 8, 2023: Freedom Moses has opened its first pop-up store, located on Bleecker Street in New York. Designers Hilla Bar and Omri Revesz developed the 550-square-foot space in partnership with Leap, a company that specializes in helping brands make the jump into brick-and-mortar. The shop features a self-service shopping model with over 1,300 pairs of slides and 30-plus styles lining the walls in a kaleidoscope of colors. Freedom Moses’ slides are curated within a new architectural and sustainable cardboard system to ensure customers can grab and go with ease. The brand is best known for its genderless, vegan slides for adults and kids. The sandals retail for $45 and come in 140 different colorways.

May 5, 2023: Wilson Sporting Goods Co. now has a retail presence in California. The brand’s first-ever California store is in Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, a 4,500-sq.-ft. location that offers products across several sport categories. The store, located at 1349 Third Street Promenade, features an in-store play-test area for consumers to trial products, as well as an “Equipment Room” where shoppers can rent select products to play-test outside of the store before purchasing. Those rental fees range from $5-$10 per day and will be taken off the final price if purchased. What’s more, Wilson confirmed it will host community programming and sport activations May 5-7, such as a tennis pop-up experience, dunk competition and special guest appearances. Store hours are Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to  9 p.m. PT, Saturday from , 10 a.m. PT to 10 p.m. PT and Sundays from 12 p.m. PT to 5 p.m. PT. Aside from California, the brand has two stores in Chicago and three in Manhattan.

May 5, 2023: Aimé Leon Dore has reopened its New York City flagship store. The store is located at 224 Mulberry St., and hours are Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. ET to 7 p.m. ET and Sunday from 12 p.m. ET to 7 p.m. ET.

April 27, 2023: REI Co-op announced today that it will open a store Prescott, Ariz., this fall. The outdoor specialty retailer said via statement today that the store, which spans 25,000 square feet, will be leased from Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe and located on tribal land at Frontier Village Center. Inside the new door, which is located at 1841 AZ-69, will be an assortment of apparel, gear and expertise for camping, running, hiking and more. Consumers will also find a full-service bike shop and be able to use the retailer’s online-pick up in store and curbside pickup features. REI said it has 9,900 members in Prescott and 619,000 members in Arizona.

April 26, 2023: Oakley has reopened the doors of one of the brand’s first retail stores based at its headquarters, Oakley One Icon in Foothill Ranch, Calif. The brand’s reimagined location showcases Oakley’s DNA through a museum of celebrated products that nod to monumental moments in the brand’s history. The reimagined store will also feature an extensive selection of best-selling eyewear such as Kato, Sutro, Holbrook as well as apparel, footwear, accessories and more. The flagship store at One Icon includes an all-new layout, updated lighting, and design features inspired by Oakley sport. Looking forward to the brand’s 50th anniversary in 2025, the new flagship is the first step in a new direction for the brand. “Understanding our past is crucial in inspiring our future. Oakley’s mysterious dystopian ‘90s aesthetic, while iconic, was born out of a survivalist mentality, something we now face daily,” said Brian Takumi, VP of soul & creative. “Our vision takes its first step with the reimagined flagship store at One Icon, a space that points to the metamodern ethos of individuality, inclusivity and positivity, encouraging people to come together and welcome them into the brand.”

April 26, 2023: Skims has launched at Saks Fifth Avenue as the Kim Kardashian-owned shapewear company adds multi-brand retail partners to continue its growth. Beginning today, Skims is available for purchase on Saks.com and in the Saks Fifth Avenue New York flagship, with plans to open additional doors across the United States, including Bal Harbour, Houston, and Boston, throughout the rest of the quarter. The product assortment features Skims’ signature collections, including Fits Everybody, Seamless Sculpt, and Cotton alongside even more customer favorites, including Soft Lounge and Boyfriend styles. The brand worked closely with Willo Perron of Perro-Rottinger to design its dedicated shop inside the fifth floor of Saks New York. The space features Skims signature rounded edged fixtures, inclusive mannequins, and a shapewear wall. To commemorate the launch, Skims also designed a visual installation on the main floor atrium of Saks New York with digital screens displaying a campaign of models wearing Seamless Sculpt shapewear walking across New York City’s bustling streets. “Launching at Saks Fifth Avenue is an exciting move into expanding Skims’ curated retail partnerships,” Jens Grede, CEO of Skims, said in a statement. “Saks is an iconic fashion institution and I’m thrilled Skims will be now available to its customers.”

April 24, 2023: Academy Sports and Outdoors will open its first location in Peoria, Ill. in the summer of 2023. This is Academy’s second location in Illinois which is set to open in Grand Prairie Plaza and will be over 60,000-square-feet. Academy’s new store will provide services like buy online pick-up in store and free shipping on most online orders over $25. Customers can also take advantage of a suite of in-store services, including free assembly on grills and bikes, fishing line winding/spooling, scope mounting, bore sighting, and the ability to purchase hunting and fishing licenses. This opening is part of Academy’s plans to continue its expansion efforts with the goal of opening 13 to 15 stores this year, and a total of 120 to 140 new stores by the end of 2027.

April 20, 2023: Louis Vuitton has opened its newly renovated store at Lenox Square Mall in Atlanta, Ga. Situated on Level 3 and marking the maison’s largest standalone store in the region, the newly designed space offers a suite of Louis Vuitton’s métiers, including men’s and women’s accessories, fragrances, jewelry, leather goods, ready-to-wear, shoes, travel and watches. A brand-new façade design of Epi glass is the first and only design found in the United States — carefully constructed of thick blocks of backlit glass embedded with stainless steel that is sculpted to mimic Louis Vuitton’s iconic Epi leather pattern. Upon entering, guests are welcomed by a petal ceiling installation composed of 300 organically shaped colored petals designed by Nami Sawada, a celebrated Japanese artist. Inside, various thoughtful and private VIC salons permit exclusive client shopping experiences, separated by large sliding doors made of translucent glass and Marcel Wanders mesh wood.

April 18, 2023: Academy Sports + Outdoors will open its first store in the Lafayette, Ind. area. Located at 100 S. Creasy Ln., the approximately 60,000-square-foot store brings a wide assortment of sports and outdoors merchandise to the area. Academy will host grand opening festivities from Friday, April 21 through Sunday, April 23. Throughout the weekend, customers can look forward to exclusive deals and giveaways, and take advantage of great prices. This marks the first store Academy has opened in 2023 and its fourth location in Indiana. Academy plans to continue its expansion efforts with the goal of opening 13 to 15 stores this year, and a total of 120 to 140 new stores by the end of 2027. “Academy Sports + Outdoors is excited to provide the Lafayette community with a destination that makes pursuing their sports and outdoors passions easy and affordable,” Sam Johnson, EVP of retail operations at Academy Sports, said in a statement.

April 18, 2023: Australian footwear brand Frankie4 is continuing to expand its brand presence in North America with the opening of a retail pop-up at The Bellevue Collection in the Seattle-area town of Bellevue. Coming just eighteen months after opening a U.S. headquarters in Seattle and unveiling a pop-up on Capitol Hill, the brand will continue to grow with a 1,300-square-foot pop-up at 575 Bellevue Square set to open in mid-April. The space will showcase a curated selection of the brand’s footwear and will serve as a community hub for events including customer-led gatherings, beauty and fashion activations, philanthropic initiatives, private shopping nights, and more. To celebrate the grand opening, Frankie4 is offering free custom monogramming to the first 25 customers who buy a new pair of shoes during opening weekend. A variety of in-store activations are also planned to celebrate its opening month. Founded in Australia in 2011 and deeply rooted in the belief that women shouldn’t have to sacrifice comfort for style, the Frankie4 range focuses on the biomechanics of feet and includes sandals, sneakers, flats, heels, and boots, available in women’s size 6-13.

April 13, 2023: Veja‘s New York outpost just got a face lift. In March, the store underwent a renovation that lasted five weeks. The redesign aimed to increase space and seating while maintaining the original appearance, which includes its customized neon pieces by Brazilian artist Kleber Matheus. New aspects can be seen in concrete and reclaimed pine wood to upgrade the flooring and refurbish the space from Office JDY architects and the Veja team. The New York flagship originally opened in March 2020 at 205 Mulberry Street in the NoLita neighborhood. It’s minimalist and raw design was a collaboration with architect Paul Van Der Grient.

April 11, 2023: Palm Angels is accelerating its global retail expansion in the APAC region with the opening of the first boutique in Seoul, South Korea. According to the brand, the store has opened in partnership with Forward Global Fashion Co., Ltd. Located at 18-2, Dosan-daero 45-gil, Gangnam-gu, a well-known luxury shopping destination of the Korean capital, the new Palm Angels store spans 150 square meters (approximately 1,615 square feet) across two floors and showcases the brand’s menswear and womenswear collections alongside the kid’s line and accessories. The new store has been developed by the Palm Angels internal architects’ team, in tight collaboration with founder and CEO Francesco Ragazzi. The interior layout follows the recognizable design model of the brand, where collections are arranged on shelves and metal displays, as well as wooden cabinets highlighting signature pieces. “I am really thrilled about the Seoul opening and proud of this new brand milestone that inaugurates our partnership with Forward Global Fashion,” Ragazzi said in a statement. “The store tells the whole Palm Angels story as it perfectly embodies the emotions, inspirations, and values of the brand.”

April 11, 2023: Amiri has opened a pop-up and newly redesigned shop-in-shop located in London’s Selfridges department store. According to the Los Angeles-based brand, the shop highlights the spring/summer 2023 collection designed by creative director Mike Amiri and is centered around a monogram floor design. The store reimagines Amiri’s spring/summer 2023 runway and features the label’s ready-to-wear, bags, accessories and footwear, the brand added. And, starting on April 20, Amiri will take over one of Selfridges’ iconic windows, displaying this season’s hand-embellished Shrunken Bomber amongst a frozen scene of tumbling chairs.

April 10, 2023: Nordstrom announced plans on Monday to open a new Nordstrom Rack in Elk Grove, Calif. The 25,000 square-foot store will be located in The Ridge Elk Grove, a popular shopping center that includes other retailers such as Costco, Sephora, In-N-Out and Starbucks. With the addition of this new location, Nordstrom will operate 64 Nordstrom Rack stores, 23 Nordstrom stores, five Nordstrom Locals and one Asos | Nordstrom in California. The store is scheduled to open in spring 2024. “We look forward to opening this new Nordstrom Rack location in Elk Grove, strengthening our network of stores and introducing new customers to Nordstrom Rack’s unique product offering,” Carl Jenkins, SVP of Nordstrom Rack stores, said in a statement. “In addition to shopping great brands at great prices, our customers in Elk Grove can take full advantage of this convenient new location to pick-up online orders and make returns.”

April 6, 2023: Fendi has opened a new boutique in Düsseldorf, Germany. Located in Königsallee, the city’s popular fashion district, the 460-square-meter (4,950-square-foot) space offers the entire Fendi men’s and women’s collections across two levels. The new store features a double height ceiling emphasized by led arches, reminiscent of the façade of Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana, Fendi’s headquarters in Rome. To celebrate the boutique’s grand opening, Fendi has tapped Pepi Erdbories, a German contemporary artist represented by Baodt.Art Gallery, to customize a white canvas Peekaboo bag through her own vision of art. In addition, Fendi will display a special selection of Peekaboo bags designed by other famous international artists, designers and celebrities over the years including ones by Zaha Hadid, Cara Delevingne, Jerry Hall, Kate Adie, Gwyneth Paltrow, Georgia May Jagger, Naomie Harris and Tanya Ling.

April 5, 2023: Todd Snyder has opened his first Chicago retail location in Lincoln Park’s Armitage-Halsted Historic District. Called “The Townhouse,” Snyder’s new store at 815 W. Armitage Avenue is located on the ground floor of a Victorian Era brick townhome constructed in 1877, replete with pressed-metal cornices and original ornate window details. The space’s interior takes inspiration from Snyder’s famed location, The Liquor Store, a historic bar-turned-boutique menswear locale in NYC’s TriBeCa neighborhood which opened in 2019. Like The Liquor Store, The Townhouse will open you up to the world of Todd Snyder, serving as a hand-edited one-stop-shop for all your sartorial needs. Snyder’s full range of menswear items along with a hand curated selection of third-party brands and exclusive collaborations are available at the shop. Additionally, the store’s shoe shop will feature iconic brands like New Balance, Asics, Converse, Alden and more. Snyder said in a statement that his decision to expand to Chicago was a very strategic one for the brand and is part of a continued national expansion that began in 2022 after the brand announced plans to open 15 stores across major metropolitan markets. “Opening in Chicago is like a homecoming for me,” said Snyder. “Growing up in Iowa, Chicago was the ‘North Star’ of cities, and I quickly developed a love for the arts, architecture and of course, the retail it had to offer.

April 4, 2023: Burberry has launched a new rainwear pop-up experience in NYC ahead of its Fifth Avenue store opening in June 2023. Open now through May 2, the pop-up, located inside Burberry’s 693 Fifth Avenue store, “celebrates the brand’s commitment to craftsmanship with artisans from Burberry’s Castleford manufacturing site and New York City-based tailors on hand for bespoke personalization,” the company said in a statement. Through booking appointments, visitors can customize their trench coats with an array of distinctive buttons, embroidery and unique patches. Drawing inspiration from Burberry’s Autumn Winter 2023 show, the space features an overhanging tent. Created in a Fifth Avenue exclusive charcoal check, the tent works as both an ode to the Burberry tents from the late 19th and early 20th century and connection to the outdoors. Windows feature the brand’s new archive-inspired logo, along with the reimagined Equestrian Knight Design.

April 4, 2023: Lids is set to open a new store in Houston. The store is slated to arrive on April 14 and consumes 1,318 square feet of retail space in the Houston Galleria, located at 5135 W Alabama Street. Houston, according to Lids, is one of its most important key markets in the country “because of its love for headwear, due in large part to its influential hip-hop culture.” This door is the second to use the format, which debuted last year in Jamaica, N.Y. This store, according to Lids, leans into key trends with exclusive and limited availability. It will release a limited quantity of a new exclusive hat every Friday, which will drop at the same time as the Lids Hat Drop store in N.Y. This drop schedule, according to Lids, aims to encourage shoppers “to shop in-store to secure their coveted hat given the online demand.” Inside, consumers will find feature digital screens showcasing the retailer’s own content, dedicated spaces for drops and an area for apparel and merchandise. Also last year, the retailer launched Lidshatdrop.com, which allows consumers to shop the website weekly for exclusive hats — that often sell out in minutes — that can only be purchased online.

March 29, 2023: Amiri is gearing up to open a new flagship store in Chicago on March 31. According to the Los Angeles-based brand, this new store will mark Amiri’s sixth location in the U.S. and the ninth internationally. Located at 46 E Walton Street in the heart of Chicago’s historic Gold Coast District, the store spans 7,500-square-feet with 4,000-square-feet sales floor area and is designed in collaboration between founder Mike Amiri and Paris-based design studio NOCOD, alongside a partnership with U.S. architectural design firm Two One Two Design. Housing the men’s and women’s ready-to-wear alongside kid’s, footwear and accessories, the store will also stock an exclusive capsule collection inspired by the red and black colors of Chicago’s iconic sport team. Consisting of tees, sweatshirts, hoodies, trackpants, MX1 jeans and caps, the collection is designed in Amiri’s signature silhouettes and motifs, including a limited- edition Chicago bone logo.

March 24, 2023: Acne Studios opened its first Miami, Fla. store in the heart of the Miami Design District last week. Located at 85 NE 41st Street, the new 200-square-meter (approximately 2,150-square-feet) store spans two floors and offers the label’s men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories and updated variations of its Musubi bag. Designed by Swedish firm Halleroed, notable features in the store include walls created in marmorino, a textured, high-gloss white plaster, with black granite steps, custom-made rugs by Swedish company Katshall and lighting by Benoît Lalloz. Nods to the Miami Art Deco style come through in details of settees and special mannequins created by artist Daniel Silver. Long-standing collaborator and furniture designer Max Lamb brought the softness via the coloristic accents in the seating. Organic and irregular shapes of the Blobs reference the unexpected quality of Acne Studios silhouettes from the spring/summer ‘23 collection, which Lamb reimagined in block shades of hand-dyed batik fabrics.

March 22, 2023: Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty is slated to open its first tri-state-area store at Roosevelt Field on Saturday, April 1. The new store is located on the upper level near the Dining District inside the Long Island, N.Y. mall and will offer an extensive assortment of accessibly-priced styles across lingerie, lounge, sleepwear and sport ranging in sizes, XS–4X/XS–XXXXL. According to the company, Savage X Fenty will host a two-day opening weekend celebration including a DJ, snacks, special giveaways and photo moments. Branded tote bags will be provided as a gift with purchases $75 and over (while supplies last), plus the opportunity for tote customizations. “We are excited to bring the Savage retail Xperience to the NY/NJ/CT tri-state area and invite a new region of customers to shop our collections IRL,” Christiane Pendarvis, co-president and chief design & merchandising officer at Savage X Fenty, said in a statement. “Our Roosevelt Field store will have a playful atmosphere – including upbeat music, colorful lights, and eye-catching decor – as well as other signature retail components like our next-gen Fit Xperience technology for optimal size matching.”

March 21, 2023: Tod’s has relocated its Milan’s Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II store in the main passage linking the cathedral to the Teatro alla Scala. The two-level store is characterized by two shop windows overlooking the Gallery itself and by a wide staircase which is visible from the entrance and made entirely of travertine. The new location houses the Tod’s women’s and men’s collections.

March 20, 2023: The Italian brand Paris Texas, acquired just 15 days ago by the Arezzo&Co group, has opened pop-up stores at the NK Store in Jardins, São Paulo, and in Ipanema and Village Mall, in Rio de Janeiro. The pop-up stores will have a special scenography inspired by the main codes of Paris Texas; furniture with an Italian design mood, velvet curtains, and carpets in shades of pink and fuchsia translate the brand’s DNA, recognized for connecting the elegance and glamor of Paris to the spirit and strength of Texas in its footwear. In addition to the brick-and-mortar presence at NK Store São Paulo, NK Store Ipanema, and NK Store Village Mall, Paris Texas shoes will also be available on the multi-brand retailer’s e-commerce platform.

March 20, 2023: New York-based specialty retailer Blue & Cream has opened a seasonal pop-up shop at Maxwell’s Plum in Wellington, Fla. The Wellington location was selected as it is a huge destination with Blue & Cream’s core Hamptons customer base, who winter down in this area due to its equestrian community draw. Opened early March, the pop-up will offer a curated selection of Blue & Cream’s favorite retail brands, including P448 as its exclusive footwear partner. “After a huge 2022 year as a women’s authenticator account with Nike in which we have witnessed a falloff in demand for the over saturated GGDB, we turned to P448 to infuse energy into our head-to-toe styling offering when our clients want a higher price point artisanal shoe for night time styling,” Jeff Goldstein, founder & CEO of Blue & Cream, said in a statement.

March 15, 2023: Crosty, the designer sneaker brand founded by Georgian-born brothers Shota and George Mikaia, has officially opened its first U.S. e-commerce site. Starting with a limited number of pairs of the brand’s popular Onda sneaker, this launch will feature the shoe in 11 signature colorways. Founded in 2015, Crosty makes its shoes in Italy and is continuing its push into the U.S. market with this latest move.

March 15, 2023: Loro Piana celebrated the launch of its new traceability service and the opening of its first store in Palo Alto, Calif. on Wednesday, March 15. Located at 660 Stanford Shopping Center, the new Palo Alto boutique features the latest store concept from Loro Piana. For the opening, Gift of Kings sculptures made by Mary Lennox were on displayed throughout the space. To celebrate the store and launch and the brand’s traceability service, a special panel discussion was moderated by Gstaad Guy with Daniela Ott from Aura Blockchain, artist Charlotte Taylor, and Giulio Bergamaschi, Strategic Missions Director at Loro Piana. Timed with the opening, Loro Piana introduced a limited and numbered series of The Gift of Kings garments exclusive to the new Palo Alto store that upon purchase, will include a unique NFT created by artist Charlotte Taylor. Once purchased, customers will scan a QR code to verify the authenticity and traceability of the item’s origin, as well as view its unique story from farm to consumer through its digital certification service.

March 13, 2023: REI Co-op will expand its brick-and-mortar footprint in Florida this fall. The outdoor retailer announced today that it will open a store this year in Sarasota, consuming 25,000 square feet of retail space at 161 North Cattlemen Rd. in the University Town Center. The store will offer apparel and gear for camping, cycling, running, hiking, paddling, climbing and more, and features of the store include a full-service bike shop, the ability to buy online and pick up in store and curbside pickup. REI revealed in a statement that it has 512,000 members in Florida, and it currently operates seven stores in the state, including Tampa, Winter Park, Palm Beach Gardens, Gainesville, Boca Raton, Jacksonville and Tallahassee.

March 8, 2023: Atmos and New Balance have teamed up to create an elevated retail experience within the Atmos Georgetown store in Washington, D.C. Dubbed the NBSE — which is pronounced “The Embassy” and stands for “the New Balance Shop Experience” — the space will host events and be a hub for exclusive New Balance apparel and footwear. This partnership between Atmos and New Balance was described in a statement as “semi-permanent” and the retailer said shoppers can expect months of programming including DJs, personalization opportunities and conversations with local creatives. Atmos said in a statement that it will use the space celebrate the unofficial New Balance fan holiday Grey Day, as well as the Cherry Blossom Festival and other moments throughout the summer. The installation — designed in partnership with Colorway and Makingworks — was executed with maple wood, which Atmos said was designed as a nod its Japanese heritage, and also features custom lighting panels that will house both exclusive and classic New Balance footwear and apparel. It also includes a DJ booth and modular furniture to host presentations, movie screenings, panel discussions and more. Also, Atmos said the experience will feature a curated collection of vinyl records on display in partnership with a local record store that pays, homage to “the D.C. influence on music across genres.” The NBSE will open March 10 at 11 a.m. ET.

March 3, 2023: Ross Dress for Less will open its newest Texas store tomorrow. The new store, located in Paris, spans 18,000 square feet and is located in the Paris Towne Center, which is at the corner of Lamar Avenue and Loop 286. With the opening, Ross Dress for Less and DD’s Discounts operate more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores.

March 2, 2023: Stüssy will open its newest store in Fukuoka, Japan on Friday. Located at 2-5-13 Tenjin, Chuo-Ku, Fukuoka-Shi, the store was conceptualized by Perron Roettinger, a design studio based in Los Angeles. According to Stüssy, this new location complements the design direction of the retailer’s other Shanghai, Nagoya, and Kyoto Chapter outposts. And, to commemorate the opening, there will be limited edition T-shirts in black, blue, red, and white with a crown on top of the brand name “S” and the letters “FUKUOKA.”

March 2, 2023: Nisolo has opened its newest retail storefront in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood. Located at 108 Newbury St., the store will carry the full line of Nisolo’s ethically made shoes and accessories, each adorned with Nisolo’s open-source Sustainability Facts Label. Styles include men’s and women’s sandals, everyday sneakers, high and low heel boots, leather handbags and accessories. The company’s flagship store is located in Nashville’s Buchanan Arts District and at the end of 2022 Nisolo expanded to Washington, D.C.’s Georgetown neighborhood. The Nisolo Boston store celebrated its grand opening on Feb. 23, with drinks, small bites, and gifts with purchase.

Feb. 27, 2023: Ross Dress for Less is set to expand its footprint in Iowa. The retailer will open its latest store on March 4 in Mason City, an 18,500-sq.-ft. door in the Willow Creek Crossing Shopping Center, located at the corner of 4th Street Southwest and South Eisenhower Avenue. Between Ross Dress for Less and its DD’s Discounts banner, the company operates more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home stores.

Feb. 24, 2023: Coach has opened the first location in a series of new concept stores in Chicago. Called “Coach Play Chicago,” the concept encourages customers to literally play in Coach spaces inspired by the surrounding community. Located at 444 N. Michigan Avenue in Chicago’s River North neighborhood, Coach Play Chicago incorporates architectural features inspired by New York City, Coach’s hometown, alongside local touches nodding to the Windy City’s history displayed throughout the store, including street signs, a baseball glove art installation and marquee signs displaying locally relevant messages, to be updated based on community happenings. Coach Play Chicago will also feature the newest expression of Coach Create, the brand’s customization experience, where local artists will host workshops where customers can create one-of-a-kind pieces at the craftsmanship bar. Customers will also be able to personalize Coach bags with monograms, embellishments and digital prints including special patches and pins exclusive to the location. Coach Play Chicago will also feature the brand’s latest collection of ready-to-wear, bags and accessories, merchandised all-gender throughout the space.

Feb. 24, 2023: Next month, Ross Dress for Less will open a new store in Colorado. The door, which is located in Thornton in the Thorncreek Crossing Shopping Center at East 120th Avenue and Washington Street, will open on March 4. The new location consumes 20,000 square feet of retail space.

Feb. 23, 2023: Tapestry Inc.-owned brand Kate Spade New York launched a new store design with the opening of a new store at The Royal Hawaiian Center in Honolulu earlier this month and in October at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. According to the brand, the newly unveiled store concept is inspired by elements of both uptown and downtown New York. Wood tones, wallcoverings and gold accents complement the brand’s signature color palette of green, black and cream, with touches of pink, red and yellow sprinkled throughout. A residential feel is layered in through eclectic decor, rich fabrics, unusual textures and artwork, all with the aim of giving both a sense of comfort and charm that resembles a New York City apartment. The boutiques offer multiple product categories, including Kate Spade New York handbags, ready-to-wear, accessories, small leather goods, tech accessories, jewelry, watches and more. Kate Spade added in a statement that it will continue to open stores with this new design throughout the year.

Feb. 20, 2023: Next month, Ross Dress for Less will open a new store in Hudson, Fla. The new door — which consumes 21,500 square feet in the Plaza of the Oaks Shopping Center at the corner of State Road 52 and Little Road — will open on March 4. Ross Dress for Less and DD’s Discounts operate more than 2,000 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 40 states, the District of Columbia, and Guam.

Feb. 17, 2023: Ross Dress for Less announced it will reopen its tornado-damaged store in Round Rock, Texas, on March 4. The store spans 30,000 square feet store and is located in the Boardwalk Shopping Center at the corner of Interstate 35 and Louis Henna Boulevard.

Feb. 16, 2023: Fleet Feet is continuing to expand its brick-and-mortar footprint, and its newest store is in Richland, Wash. The door is owned by Julie and Wade Pannell — owners of five other Fleet Feet stores in Washington — and is located at 620 George Washington Way. With stores on the west and east sides of the state, Fleet Feet said in a statement that this Tri-Cities location “provides a convenient link between the other stores and serves as an ideal spot for runners and walkers alike.” The grand opening for Fleet Feet Tri–Cities will take place in late March, and the festivities will include a ribbon cutting, fun run from the store, special deals and giveaways from top brands. Fleet Feet said the store will also offer the Ignite! 5k Training Program starting in March, and there are plans to add a half–marathon group in the fall.

Feb. 8, 2023: Fendi has opened the doors to its first flagship boutique in Seoul, South Korea. Dubbed “Palazzo Fendi Seoul,” the 715 square meter (approximately 7,696 square feet) store is located in the Cheongdam-dong neighborhood of the city and houses the brand’s women’s and men’s ready-to-wear and fur collections, shoes, accessories, leather goods, and home accessories across four levels. The impressive façade combines geometric diagonals in stainless steel finishing and central glass windows that converge towards the corner of the building, through a modern and urban reinterpretation of classic Roman patterns. The façade is emphasized by LED arches, Fendi signature element recalling those of Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana – Fendi’s Rome headquarters.

Feb. 9, 2023: Fleet Feet announced today that its newest store will be located in Harrisburg, Pa. The store is owned by Shelby and Fred Joslyn, who also own Fleet Feet Mechanicsburg. The new door, which is located in the High Pointe Commons Plaza at 4640 High Pointe Blvd., will host a grand opening celebration on Feb. 25. The celebration will include a group run at 9 a.m. ET, shoe demos and giveaways, happy hour with Hoka at 4 p.m. ET and free Fleet Feet Harrisburg T-shirts for customers who spend $200 or more. The store, according to Fleet Feet, will employ the brand’s personalized outfitting experience inside, dubbed Fit ID, which it explained includes 3D foot scanning technology to accurately assess the size and shape of the customer’s feet and how each foot moves through the gait cycle.

Jan. 17, 2023: Nisolo has opened its second physical retail store. Located at 3251 M St NW in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., the store carries the full line of Nisolo’s ethical shoes and accessories. The expansion of its retail footprint to DC is part of a larger expansion plan for Nisolo into brick-and-mortar retail across the country in 2023. This location joins the brand’s first flagship store in Nashville, Tenn. The opening also comes in time to celebrate the one year anniversary of Nisolo’s Sustainability Facts Label, the brand’s comprehensive evaluation tool backed by hundreds of data points, certifications, and third-party data.

Jan. 14, 2023: Dior has opened a new pop-up space featuring its men’s spring 2023 capsule collection with ERL in Beverly Hills, Calif. Located at 8175 Melrose Avenue, the pop-up features models of vintage cars created by Dior and cinema equipment from the 1950s decorate the space to transport shoppers into the world of “California Couture.” Key elements and colors inspired by the collection including bright shades of blue, the skater print from the show invitation and special Dior ERL logos are drawn in throughout the space. Shoppers will be able to enjoy beverage and light bites from a ‘50s inspired café. To finish the setting, a main screen will be playing the spring 2023 runway show. This location is one in a series of openings globally and will remain open through Feb. 12.

Jan. 11, 2023: Academy Sports and Outdoors will open its first location in Lafayette, Ind. in the spring of 2023. The fourth location in Indiana is set to open in Lafayette Pavilions and will be over 60,000-square-feet. Academy plans to continue its expansion efforts with the goal of opening a total of 80 to 100 new stores by the end of 2026. The location will carry a wide assortment of sports and outdoors products from top brands like Nike, Adidas, Columbia, The North Face, Wolverine, Berkley, Winchester, Chubbies, and Under Armour, plus Academy’s private label brands like Magellan Outdoors, Freely, H2OX, R.O.W., BCG, and Mosaic. “We’re excited to be a new destination for the Lafayette community to find everything they need to pursue their sports and outdoors passions with top national brands like Nike, Adidas, Yeti, Columbia, Carhartt, and many more,” Sam Johnson, Academy’s EVP of retail operations said in a statement. “At Academy Sports + Outdoors we deliver fun, great value, and unmatched service that makes it easier for Boilermaker fans to gear up for game day, kids to play ball, hunters to prepare for deer season, and active families to find the apparel and shoes they want.”

Jan. 11, 2023: REI Co-op will open a new store in Athens, Ga. on Friday, Feb. 10. Located in Beechwood Shopping Center at 196 Alps Road, the 17,200-square-foot store will feature a wide assortment of outdoor gear and apparel for camping, hiking, cycling, running, fitness and more. The store will also feature a specialty bike shop will be staffed with certified mechanics to tune or repair equipment. “Our team of 50 employees is excited to be part of the local outdoor community,” Timothy Myers, REI store manager, said in a statement. “Beyond our store, we look forward to taking care of natural places in and around Athens, including a staff service project this weekend to remove invasive plant species from the Middle Oconee floodplain with Georgia River Network.” To celebrate the grand opening, REI invested $10,000 each in Bike Athens and All Terrain Georgia, an initiative of Aimee Copeland Foundation in partnership with Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The nonprofit partners will have a presence during the weekend.