ANDREWS, a Toronto-based family-owned luxury womenswear retailer, is opening a new concept store in Oakville.
The company was founded in 1990 and has since then grown into three locations in the Greater Toronto Area, including Yorkville Village, Bayview Villiage, and CF Sherway Gardens, and will now be adding its fourth location. Opening September 15th, ANDREWS will be opening its fourth location and first standalone store at 283 Lakeshore Drive East and will be adding a new concept.
After dedicating its time to luxury apparel, ANDREWS will be expanding the store concept to also include lifestyle and contemporary pieces.
“We’re thrilled to open our first concept store in Oakville and our location is right at the heart of it all. We are looking forward to becoming an important member of this dynamic and vibrant community. We have discovered some fabulous new apparel collections to showcase along with highly curated home decor and vintage designer artware from around the world. The way an artist can create with glass or ceramic is like that of a designer creating out of fabric – this is what fills me with wonder and amazement,” says Darren Mason, President of ANDREWS.
The new store will be 5,000 square feet and will be “very light, bright, and will incorporate elements from the Japandi styles of interiors. And I am particularly fond of the punctuation from the Moooi Heracleum chandeliers and the natural light that pours into the space.”
Customers can find a variety of products including luxury clothing and accessories. ANDREWS has around 100 designers including Smythe, Self Portrait, MaxMara, BA&SH, Fabiana Filippi, Herno, Eleventy and Frame among others.
“Fresh New Direction”
For the first time, ANDREWS will be incorporating lifestyle and contemporary pieces to its selection, which has taken close to a year to develop the layout and finalize.
“Our mission with the new concept store is to bring more of a focus on lifestyle into the environment with a view to scaling this across the organization. I’ve always loved art and objet d’art and this journey to expand the ANDREWS curation of product to include lifestyle feels like a natural extension of our business. Our team has been very hard at work developing the concept, finalizing the aspects of home decor and vintage artware and of course, curating all that is being featured in this new location.”
“I have had my eye on Oakville for a while. The “Lakeshore strip” continues to evolve, it has developed into a real hub of activity. I love that downtown Oakville has everything that a larger city may have all on one street with a very deeply rooted sense of community.”
On September 15th, customers can expect an open house and are encouraged to explore the space, ask questions, and enjoy light refreshments.
“There is Plenty More on our Roadmap”
Although the new standalone store is its biggest highlight of 2022, ANDREWS is also going to be moving its Yorkville Village location to a more “prominent and natural light-filled space.” The Yorkville Village location will be moved to Hazelton Avenue and will be opening in October.
Mason said it is also embracing the e-commerce world and will be launching a new website to offer “more interactive and seamless experience for customers. “The new website will be available for customers by the end of the year. And lastly, to develop partnerships and relationships, ANDREWS is looking at including pop-up collections and activations – information about the pop-ups will come later.
“The layout of the store lends itself to create interactive and focused areas to feature pop-up or pop-in collections and activations. As we develop and nurture partnerships and relationships within the community, we look forward to offering a fulsome schedule of events, pop-ups, and installations within the store. Stay tuned.”
Mason also suggested ANDREWS has plenty more in terms of plans, although those are currently not public.
“In the months ahead, we want to explore deeper into lifestyle and have plans to collaborate with local businesses in Oakville and across the country. We want to bring the space to life with collaborations and pop-ups, with cafes, art galleries and more. The result of this commitment to discovery is a new, dynamic, and ever-evolving space. Our customers can now discover the beauty within the apparel and the lifestyle pieces that resonate with their own personal style and lifestyle. I would encourage your readers to make a trip out to Oakville — not just to see our new store, but also to experience the energy and vibrancy of this unique community.”
