Online service Gwynnie Bee experiments with New York pop-up

Gwynnie Bee is moving into retail starting this weekend. The plus-size online subscription service just announced that it will be opening a pop-up in Manhattan that will be open for approximately two months.

The 3,000 square foot space is set to open this Saturday, April 1. Debuting in New York, the store acts as a way for the online subscription service to dip its feet into retail. As the plus-size market is growing, it seems that this may be a great opportunity for Gwynnie Bee to experiment with brick-and-mortar. Although online revenue is still prominent in today’s world, having multiple options is one way that the plus-size brand is strategizing its business. “Even with the surge of online being a great way for consumers to access and order apparel, to have an omnichannel experience for your customer, you need to be thinking about how to bring the two together,” chief executive officer and founder Christine Hunsicker told WWD.

The pop-up is set to be on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan’s Flatiron District. New York marks one of the major cities where Gwynnie Bee has a large customer base, so it is likely that the pop-up will be a success. At the store, there won’t be registers as customers will end up signing up for the online service. The purpose of the pop-up is to allow customers the experience of a brick-and-mortar and allow them to try on the clothing. “The goal is to convert as many people [to the online service] as possible,” Hunsicker told the publication.