Retail Recap: The important openings and partnerships of September 2023

Chloe Burney

29 September 2023

As September comes to a close, the retail sector reflects on a rocky month. As inflation continues to soar, a third of retailers raised prices. This, in conjunction with unexpected warm weather, knocked high street sales.

Throughout the month, there has been a positive slew of trading updates from companies such as Nike, Mytheresa and Primark.

TheIndustry.fashion has curated a list of the retail stores that have opened this month, as well as a number of partnerships from businesses including Crocs, Simone Rocha and Harrods.

Store Openings

In Pictures: Lounge announced it is opening its first-ever brick-and-mortar store

Social-first lingerie, swimwear and loungewear label, Lounge, is opening its first-ever permanent store at London's Westfield White City. The store, which opens on Saturday 7 October, is situated next to Sephora on Level one of the shopping centre.

footasylum

Footasylum opened flagship store in Oxford Street as demand grows

Footasylum opened the doors to its flagship store at 73-89 Oxford Street in London, as it continues to see strong demand for its branded streetwear offering.

In Pictures: Paul & Shark reveals new Regent Street flagship store

Italian clothing brand Paul & Shark opened a 2,500 sq ft flagship store at 233 Regent Street, the brand’s only UK store – marking its return to the UK high street.

Tropicfeel opened a pop-up in Shoreditch for ‘Canyon HDry’ trainer launch

Barcelona-born travel brand Tropicfeel opened a two-day pop-up shop at Ace Corner, 149-150 Shoreditch High Street in East London, on 29 September 2023, in celebration of its new ‘Canyon HDry’ trainer.

Kurt Geiger opened flagship store on London’s Oxford Street

British footwear and accessories brand Kurt Geiger opened a 2,916 sq ft flagship shop at 272-274 Oxford Street in London. Envisioned by Kurt Geiger’s Chief Creative Officer, Rebecca Farrar-Hockley, and brought to life by architect Stefano Ripoli, the new store "celebrates London’s creativity and individuality".

paige

Paige opened the doors to its first store in London

Californian-based denim label, Paige, opened the doors to its first international retail situated in the heart of the British capital, on the Kings Road in Chelsea. Located at 14 Duke of York Square, the boutique will showcase the brand’s Autumn Winter 2023 collection as well as a comprehensive selection of denim, knits, outerwear, accessories and UK exclusives.

Lucy & Yak opened its 7th UK store in Cardiff as the retail roll-out continues

Conscious clothing brand Lucy & Yak opened its seventh UK store at 33 Royal Arcade, Unit A1 Morgan Quarter, Cardiff, on 30 September, as its retail roll-out pushes on.

Il Porticciolo opened King’s Road boutique

Luxury Italian childrenswear brand Il Porticciolo opened a flagship two-level 1,077 sq ft boutique at 254 King’s Road, London – following a relocation from its previous store on nearby Sydney Street.

In Pictures: Frasers opened a new department store concept in Norwich

Frasers Group opened its new 'Frasers' department store concept at Chantry Place in Norwich, demonstrating its commitment to physical retail in the UK.

In Pictures: The Rolling Stones brought ‘Hackney Diamonds’ merch to Carnaby Street

In celebration of The Rolling Stones’ latest album Hackney Diamonds – the first in 18 years – the British rock band brought its official album merchandise to RS No.9 Carnaby in London.

Carvela stepped up outlet presence joining Outlet Shopping at The O2

Outlet Shopping at The O2 has announced the opening of Carvela, the premium footwear and accessories retailer, marking the first opening since the destination revised its brand identity.

Avirex took up two new residences in London's Soho and Fitzrovia

New York-based Avirex, which was acquired by British sports and streetwear distributor Focus Brands last year, is set to open two pop-up stores in London’s Soho and Fitzrovia.

Seasalt dipped into international waters with its first stand-alone store in New Zealand

Cornish brand Seasalt is continuing its store expansion, this time crossing international waters to open its first stand-alone store in New Zealand’s Auckland.

Reiss Centre:MK

In Pictures: Reiss opened new store at Centre:MK in Milton Keynes

Premium fashion brand Reiss opened its new 1,884 sq ft store at the Centre:MK shopping centre in Milton Keynes.

British duo Phase Eight and Hobbs signed at Scotland's Caledonia Park

Sister brands, Phase Eight and Hobbs, continued their expansion across UK shopping centres, this time opening at Scotland’s Caledonia Park.

The North Face to open new store at Manchester Arndale

Outdoor retailer, The North Face, is gearing up to open a new 3,630 sq ft store at the Manchester Arndale shopping centre later this year, having signed a 10-year lease for a unit on New Cannon Street.

Dune London headed North to Manchester Arndale

Footwear and accessory label, Dune London, is set to return to central Manchester after signing a 5-year lease at Manchester Arndale shopping centre. In the new 1,596 sq ft retail space, Dune will offer a range of premium footwear, handbags and leather goods.

Rains opens third London store at Spitalfields

Danish outerwear brand Rains has just opened a 1,308 sq ft store at 39 Brushfield Street, Spitalfields, in East London.

Cribbs Mall welcomed Victoria’s Secret and Clogau to Bristol

Cribbs Mall announced that lingerie brand, Victoria’s Secret, and jeweller, Clogau, are the latest retailers to sign to the South Gloucestershire shopping centre.

In Pictures: Paris Saint-Germain opened a London Oxford Street store in partnership with Lids

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) opened a 4,844 sq ft store at 192 Oxford Street in London, in partnership with North American sportswear retailer Lids.

Footasylum opened "most technologically advanced store yet" at Lakeside

Footasylum opened a 10,000 sq ft store at Lakeside Shopping Centre in Essex that’s over three times the size of its previous 3,000 sq ft unit, with “an improved look and feel”, as part of its upsizing and new store opening strategy.

In Pictures: Primark's 192nd UK store in Salisbury

Primark opened a 29,700 sq ft store in the Old George Mall in Salisbury, Wiltshire, its 192nd store in the UK and its first in England in over two years.

Nike's concept store is heading to Birmingham's Bullring

Global sportswear giant, Nike, is set to open its first-ever ‘Nike Rise’ concept store in Birmingham at Hammerson’s Bullring & Grand Central, providing local sports enthusiasts with a series of new and innovative digital experiences and services.

sign of the times

Sign of the Times brought circular fashion to McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Swindon

McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Swindon championed circular fashion by partnering up with Sign of the Times, the female-owned luxury reseller, to open a pop-up shop.

In Pictures: Belstaff unveiled reimagined Regent Street flagship store

Belstaff revealed its freshly refurbished 2,077 sq ft flagship store at 203 Regent Street, a reimagined space that has been designed in collaboration with Scandinavian architecture and interior design studio Specific Generic.

Pour Moi to open new store in Leeds with other major UK cities to follow

Womenswear brand Pour Moi is gearing up to open a new 1,043 sq ft store next to John Lewis in Unit C18/19 on the ground floor of Victoria Gate shopping centre in Leeds this November, with more new stores planned for London, Manchester and Brighton.

Partnerships

Marc Cain transcended the digital realm with Pocket Styler

Fusing the realms of gaming and fashion, Pocket Styler, the fashion styling app, joined forces with Marc Cain, the German premium brand, in celebration of the designer’s 50th Anniversary this year.

Peloton and lululemon joined forces for global apparel and content partnership

Peloton and lululemon signed a five-year strategic deal that sees Peloton providing exclusive digital fitness content for lululemon, while the Canadian brand will become the primary athletic apparel partner to Peloton.

In Pictures: Crocs got the sparkling Simone Rocha treatment

Simone Rocha and Crocs debuted their 'more is more' collaborative footwear collection on the runway at London Fashion Week. Crocs, which recently came back into the zeitgeist, has transformed its reputation from creating fashion faux pas to a fashion-forward statement.

Lee and Roaringwild channelled the '80s club scene in a collaborative collection

Global denim label, Lee, launched its first unisex apparel collection with Roaringwild, the China-based streetwear brand. Both labels came together to create a capsule collection that highlights music's ties to streetwear culture.

Fashion powerhouses Jimmy Choo and Jean Paul Gaultier announced collaboration

Luxury footwear and accessories brand, Jimmy Choo, announced an upcoming collaboration is on the horizon with the French fashion house of Jean Paul Gaultier.

Crocs was back again with another collab, this time with Levi’s

Just days after unveiling its latest collection with Simone Rocha on London Fashion Week, global footwear brand Crocs was back at it again with another collaboration, this time with Levi’s.

versace selfridges

In Pictures: Versace presented a monochrome marvel at The Selfridges Corner Shop

We said goodbye to Charlotte Tilbury x Disney and hello to Versace as the Italian luxury label took over The Selfridges Corner Shop.

Harrods’ hallowed halls welcomed The Handbag Clinic

The Handbag Clinic, the handbag restoration and luxury reseller, partnered with world-famous department store Harrods to launch an in-store concession.

Primark joined forces with Rita Ora on new ‘multi-season’ fashion collaboration

Primark teamed up with singer, songwriter and style icon Rita Ora to launch a new fashion collaboration which "will allow Primark customers to shop her famous style for less".

mulberry

Mulberry collaborated with designer Stefan Cooke on a pre-loved collection

British heritage brand, Mulberry, and London-based designer, Stefan Cooke, unveiled the latest limited-edition collaboration in the Mulberry Editions series.

Barbie and Wrangler’s latest collection was Kenough

Barbiecore made a case for sticking around with Barbie and Wrangler’s western-inspired collaborative collection of denim. The global denim brand joined forces with Mattel’s Barbie to create a collection that celebrates the two brands’ similar heritages to champion women and girls.

Follow us

Retail Recap: The important openings and partnerships of September 2023

Store Openings

Partnerships

Features