First Adore Me store will be at company’s Manhattan headquarters

For its first brick-and-mortar store, e-commerce lingerie seller Adore Me is taking a cue from startups such as Warby Parker, Bonobos and Gilt Groupe, and opening a showroom at its New York City offices.

The appointment-only store, which requires shoppers to schedule their visit on the Adore Me site, will be located at 205 W. 39th St., Floor 16. It will open to the public on April 5.

Shoppers will have a 45-minute-long appointment in which they will have a one-on-one session with a stylist, who will style and fit them, according to company spokeswoman Camille Kress. Appointments are available for one, two or three people at a time. Purchases may be made via iPad, with items shipped directly to the customer’s home or office. It will open initially with hours of Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., although it may extend to weekends in the future, Kress said.

Sharon Klapka, Adore Me’s vice president of business and brand development, first told us that the company would open a store in Manhattan earlier this month, when the brand was hosting a pop-up at the Hudson Hotel. The upscale pop-up, which featured plush-carpet dressing rooms and a stylist to measure bra sizes, was set up very similar to the way the store will be, but at that point Klapka didn’t reveal the exact location of the first U.S. store, beyond saying New York City.

Here’s what she told the New York Business Journal via email Q & A about the headquarters location, and why the company went the by-appointment-only route.

“Adore Me has been successful online thanks to its ability to create a personalized experience — each Adore Me shopper gets a curated lingerie showroom tailored for their specific style and size preferences, ensuring they don’t get lost in a sea of lingerie,” Klapka wrote. “Exploring the offline route, it was clear to us that we want to recreate that personalized and customized experience, and similar to what we did online — revolutionize the way you shop for lingerie. That is the reason we decided to engage our customers with a unique, curated, by-appointment-only experience. Shoppers would get a 1-on-1 with a lingerie expert who will listen to their style needs, help them find their true bra size, and help find the perfect lingerie fit for them. We strongly believe this is a highly engaging experience with an unmatched added-value in today’s lingerie shopping landscape, particularly when the appointment is completely free of charge and you can buy the perfect set for you in only $39.95.”

But if Adore Me — which is aiming to take on Victoria’s Secret — follows in the footsteps of Warby Parker going forward, it will be in good shape. The eyeglass retailer, which started online, has 27 stores open nationwide, including four in New York City (one at its SoHo headquarters) and soon a fifth in Brooklyn. Bonobos operates 20 U.S. Guideshops, to try on and order and get items shipped, with four in Manhattan, including one at its Flatiron headquarters.

Gilt Groupe opened a showroom at its headquarters last summer, but now that it has been acquired by Hudson’s Bay Co. its future brick-and-mortar presence will be as boutiques within Saks Fifth Avenue Off Fifth, the discount version of Saks, starting with one that is opening next month in midtown.

Source : Bizjournal