Sustainable fashion brand Reformation is opening its first store in Vancouver in the city’s trendy Kitsilano neighbourhood, marking the brand’s third location in the country and first in Western Canada.
This retail space follows in the footsteps of Reformation’s first two Canadian locations, both located in Toronto. Situated at 2262 W 4th Ave, Vancouver, and spanning over 1,300 square feet, Reformation’s newest location brings its coveted styles across all product categories to Vancouver shoppers, 98% of which are made with recycled, regenerative, or renewable materials, in line with the brand’s commitment to being circular by 2030.
The Vancouver store marks the brand’s 53rd store globally and third overall in Canada, a global region of emphasis for the brand.
A full list of Reformation stores can be found here: https://www.thereformation.com/stores.html.
As with all of their retail locations, Reformation Vancouver was designed with sustainability in mind. Reformation invests in green building infrastructure in its facilities to minimize its waste, water, and energy footprints and leverages Green Business Certification standards across its global retail fleet. In addition to offsetting 100% of the store’s electricity usage with renewable energy, this location features vintage furnishings, hangers made with FSC-certified wood and reusable deadstock totes, said the company.
Customers can also recycle their well-loved Reformation pieces at any store through RefRecycling. To participate, customers can drop off their items at Ref Vancouver and receive credit towards future purchases, explained the retailer.
Sarah Hooe, VP Global Business Development at Reformation, said Reformation was founded in 2009 in Los Angeles.
“We’ve been a champion for sustainable fashion and climate action since day one, and that’s something that really differentiates us from the broader marketplace. From a product standpoint, we launch new styles in small quantities twice a week online and once a week in store,” she said.
“Once we understand what resonates with our customers, we produce more of it, which helps us mitigate literal and financial waste. Aesthetically, we’re famous for our vintage-inspired apparel that marries the best of timeless and trend-driven style. We really believe in a zero trade off value proposition: beautiful, flattering pieces that make you feel confident and are also better for the planet.
“Our first two Canadian stores are both in Toronto, so we’re excited to finally have a location on the other side of the country. It feels like a natural next step both in terms of reaching a broader audience across the country and a nod to our own roots as a West Coast-based brand.”
Hooe said Kitsilano has three major characteristics that made it ideal for the retailer’s first Vancouver store: 1) alignment with its target demographic 2) a well-developed shopping area with a strong sense of community and 3) proximity to downtown and ease of access via public transportation.
“The store itself is about 1,300 square feet total. What makes it so special is our unique tech-enabled format, which brings the best of online shopping to our physical locations. We have screens throughout the store that you can use to select items for your dressing room just like you would build a cart online. You can also work with one of our amazing store associates to do this, if you prefer,” she explained.
“Our team fulfills the dressing room from our back of house, which functions like a mini distribution centre, so your items are waiting for you when you enter the dressing room and customers don’t have to dig around for their size or carry armfuls of clothing around as they shop. We also have screens in our dressing rooms, which allow customers to request new sizes, colours or different styles altogether as they try items on and figure out what they do and don’t like.”
“Selfishly, as someone born and raised in Canada, it’s really fun to lead the process of growing the brand across the country. Canada represents a significant customer acquisition opportunity as we focus on international expansion holistically as a brand. We see an opportunity in the marketplace for beautiful, sustainable apparel – particularly for work and dressier occasions – at our price point that we believe we have a unique opportunity to meet,” added Hooe.
Will there be future Canadian stores?
“There’s nothing concrete to share right now, but the short answer is that we envision opening many more stores across the country. Right now, we’re focused on getting to know our customers in Vancouver in a deeper way and making sure we’re delivering the best possible in-store experience for them,” added Hooe.
“We also just formally launched the brand at Holt Renfrew, our exclusive wholesale partner in Canada, which brings Reformation to all of their doors in several major Canadian cities. It’s a huge opportunity to drive brand awareness and learn more about consumer preferences across the country, which we’ll use to inform both our retail and merchandising strategies.”
Related Retail Insider stories:
- Reformation Opens Pop-Up at Holt Renfrew in Calgary to Test the Market
- Reformation to Open 1st Tech-Heavy Canadian Flagship Store in Toronto
