Memorial Day is still six weeks away, but knowing the holiday no longer signals the start of the shopping season, Frances Valentine has opened a second store in the Hamptons.
With many city dwellers relocating due to the pandemic and WFH, the town of Southampton has seen a nearly 22 percent population increase. With another store in Sag Harbor, Frances Valentine seized the chance to open a 550-square-foot space at 42 Jobs Lane, said chief executive officer Elyce Arons. Located near the Ralph Lauren and Fivestory stores, the new outpost features a midcentury interior and an assortment of summery apparel, accessories and other sundries. The address was once an outpost for Vilebrequin, and more recently Just Girls.
The Sag Harbor location remains open with a lease that runs through the end of October. Arons is happy to keep both spaces open. “People out there tend to shop in their own town, or go visit a town and shop there. But they wouldn’t necessarily visit South[hampton], Sag [Harbor]and East Hampton,” she said.
During last weekend’s soft opening, several neighboring retailers and locals dropped by, Arons said. Given the amount of entertaining that goes on in the Hamptons, Frances Valentine is offering a large selection of hostess and party gifts.
Declining to comment on sales expectations for the Southampton store, Arons said the company’s retail business increased last year by 236 percent. In addition, to the two Hamptons stores, there are outposts in Houston, Palm Beach and Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The plan is to open two more this year, with Atlanta and Dallas being potential locations.
The upswing in retail sales could be chalked up to shoppers’ eagerness to see and feel products and the brand’s “colorful, bold and happy” ethos, according to Arons. To celebrate the Southampton store opening, a party is being planned for the beginning of the summer.
In the months ahead, Frances Valentine’s caftans, tunics, sun hats, cotton poplin cigarette pants and summer sandals are expected to be popular. Shoppers will also find for the first time beach umbrellas, beach chairs and pool floats. Enthusing about the new assortment, the CEO said, “Spring and summer are just so happy for us because everything is just so bright. I hope we have enough inventory for the summer, because they tend to sell out quickly.”
That is not always a nice problem to have. Arons said with a laugh, “Then when you’re out of it, you kick yourself for not ordering more.”
All in all, the greatest business challenge currently is opening stores quickly, Arons said. “Small companies like us depend on getting a great space for a very fair market value on rent, and the rents are starting to creep up again. And if companies have build-outs to do, the building materials are expensive,” she said.