Australian fashion label, Limedrop, has found itself a permanent address following a series of pop up shops since its launch in 2006. The womenswear and accessories label, founded by Clea Garrick, has steadily built its presence through a series of pop up shops in Melbourne and Sydney, however, the brand has bucked the trend of most local, independent designers, opening its first permanent bricks and mortar store on Melbourne’s Collins St. “We’ve had five pop up shops in Melbour
ne and one in Sydney once before,” Garrick told Inside Retail Premium.
“The label has been around for seven years, so over each Christmas and summer period we would set up a pop up. It’s now really lovely to have a space to engage with our customers and be able to showcase the full range.
“I always felt that with a two month pop up shop we would open and then next minute it would feel like we were leaving straight away. It’s nice to have a home.”
Garrick says the wave of international retailers hitting Australia has helped create a new buzz around fashion in Melbourne.
“It’s a really exciting time for retail, especially in Melbourne. We’ve had so many of the northern hemisphere brands enter the market and it’s a real buzz,” Garrick said.
“It’s getting people excited about retail, and it’s getting them out shopping.”
Prior to its pop ups, Limedrop was stocked in boutiques. It launched an online store in 2007.
Garricks says the brand will continue to wholesale, having just launched in Dubai.
“Originally we were wholesaling into multi-brand boutiques, which is what we’re continuing to do in Australia, and we also stock into Dubai at the moment.”
Limedrop will continue operating pop up shops, but is keeping an eye out for more permanent stores.
“We want to continue with pop up shops, but a focus for us now also is looking to grow the number of stores. We’re definitely working towards targets, but it’s a very fluid number.”