penultimate stores of summer

mornin’ merry makers 💐 👗 👒 👃 👟

huge thank you to all who took our 2025 retail holiday pulse survey.

if you haven’t filled it out yet, it takes under two minutes. do it for the data. do it for the thank you gifts. do it for the memes. do it for me (please!).

ok. now that you’ve (hopefully) clicked that, let’s get back to summer.

bc before i give myself fully over to pumpkin spice, i’ve got a few more sun-drenched stops on the 100 stores of summer tour.

so far we’ve scrolled 90 stores across 13 brands.

for the final ten, i’m switching it up.

i’m turning the spotlight to the single-store powerhouse (a few will have two soon). but these are still players that are early in their brick and mortar retail game. places where odds are much higher you run into the founders. systems are likely to break. still the remember when kind of places.

the ones you’ll brag about in the future saying“i shopped the first one.”

today: the first 5.

monday: the last 5.

flor keeps, austin, tx

i love how more shops focusing on selling things with a shelf life longer than a week, especially when it comes to flowers. this local store is even more stunning in person and has a spot-on non-profit partner.

• santiago salazar curates dried and preserved blooms as a gallery of art and rebellion against weekly wilt.

• bouquets start at $12 making forever flowers as accessible as a farmers’ market bunch but infinitely longer lasting.

• the space feels like a hybrid of studio and gallery with paintbrushes suspended overhead that pain down color grouped dried custom bouquets.

• events can rent centerpieces for sustainable celebrations, becoming more popular with weddings.

• philanthropy is built in with a partnership with well aware to fund wells in east africa with the line “our flowers do not need water people do.”

• i think a dallas store is open too, but website is very confusing….

gigi burris, chinatown, nyc

custom hats are becoming more and more of thing. it’s not just western wear like i covered with kemo sabe. gigi burris is bringing ladies hats the lovin and refresh they deserve in her millinery.

• boutique opened in late 2023 with custom hand craft at its center.

• gigi herself often greets clients with her mission of helping people “leave feeling more confident than when they arrived.”

• hand blocking on wooden forms while you wait with customers choosing ribbons and details to create one of a kind pieces, loved by brides.

• credibility built through recognition as a cfda vogue fashion fund finalist and hats created for rihanna and madonna.

• design mixes antique furnishings from paris and nyc with neon signage bridging timeless craft and modern energy.

commodity fragrances, soho, nyc

so cool to see a store make the invisible visible. commodity's cracked the code on selling their experience alongside products, proving that when you can't touch or see what you're buying, the store itself becomes the product.

• flagship at 113 crosby opened october 2024 and feels like a museum for scent.

• the journey begins with fragrance and continues through three intensity levels labeled personal, expressive, and bold.

• checkout counter designed as a giant perfume box with a scent archive displayed inside like a library.

• staff is very much loved as evidenced by the google reviews.

• lighting shifts colors as you move through intensities making the invisible sense of scent visual and physical. helping you learn while your shop.

sporty & rich, soho, nyc

creators are starting to make their dent on traditional retail. emily oberg went from influencer to physical community builder to brick and mortar. her focus is on giving her community somewhere beautiful to actually spend time together.

• emily oberg’s flagship opened in july 2023 inside the former dior homme space across two floors.

• café bar serves pressed juices and bone broth in retro glassware.

• design details features vintage tennis racquets and nods to princess diana athleisure nostalgia.

• spa services available with lymphatic drainage and buccal facials adding a layer of emily endorsed wellness to the store tbh i can’t tell if this is still offered, but it was the initial vision.

• store #2 in la looks to be in the works…

tuckernuck, georgetown, dc

prep seems to be the anti-fast fashion and tuckernuck's expansion proves timeless american style plus old school hospitality is the luxury consumers want. two sisters bringing more chintz and charm to the east coast.

• founded in 2012 by two sisters, inspired by a nantucket island retreat with americana charm, and opened dc shop in 2016.

• fitting rooms covered in vintage floral wallpaper that feels like a grandmother’s parlor. you checkout at a kitchen island.

• a monogram bar and seasonal bucket lists fold personal touch and local connection into the brand experience.

• staff remember names and preferences creating a hospitality model most retailers abandoned long ago. they give out local bucket lists of events.

• store number two opened this week (after i wrote this email) in nyc on madison avenue designed like the quintessential ues townhouse with a front parlor, a family room, a conservatory, and a boudoir.

taken together these five show the future is not about bigger footprints or faster rollouts. it is intimacy. it is education. it is customization. these places feel more like ateliers classrooms or wellness retreats than stores. soho is still a big test ground with brands starting with big budgets.

retail is moving toward founders in the room storytelling in the walls and experiences that make you linger.

scale will always matter, but in the first store, soul matters way more.

p.s. i started taking creatine last year. first brand i tried = nonstop headaches. turns out not all creatine is the same. headaches stopped when i started taking creapure. the type of creatine found in momentous 👇️