Provided by Dayton's
As the holiday season begins, local brick-and-mortar stores are competing against online giants like Amazon and Temu for shoppers’ dollars. eMarketer predicts U.S. holiday retail e-commerce sales will reach a record-breaking $271.6 billion, a 9.5% increase from 2023. Despite the rise in online shopping, nearly three-quarters of U.S. holiday shoppers will still buy gifts in store, with in-store sales comprising over 80% of total holiday sales. One thing is clear: Shoppers still largely prefer to shop in person.
Retailers in the Twin Cities are adapting to these shifting consumer behaviors, spurred by e-commerce, social media, and the pandemic. Many are offering multisensory in-store experiences, known as experiential shopping, to attract customers.
A decade ago, the retail scene was more straightforward. Macy’s was still open in the old Dayton’s complex in downtown Minneapolis, and Uptown thrived with national and independent retailers. But change was on the horizon. Macy’s closed in 2017, following closures of Neiman Marcus in 2013, while the North Loop area became a hub for hip local stores, and pop-up markets like Minneapolis Craft Market and Minneapolis Vintage Market gained popularity. Local fashion also flourished, as did independently produced fashion shows featuring local designers—Fashion Week Minnesota was founded in 2015 to celebrate the local fashion community with semiannual events.
Photo by Alex Carroll/Meet Minneapolis
The pandemic brought brick-and-mortar retail to a standstill in March 2020. While online shopping was growing, many independent brands still relied on in-person sales. The pandemic forced them to refocus on digital strategies, leading some to close or launch online shops.
Local jewelry brand Larissa Loden illustrates this shift. Pre-pandemic, Loden sold primarily at pop-up markets, her studio, and wholesale, with only 15% of sales from her website. “When the brand started, I was just doing what I instinctively knew to do,” she says, “which was to sell in person.”
The pandemic prompted her to ramp up the brand’s online presence and explore direct-to-consumer strategies. “We had to become experts overnight,” she says. “We were throwing spaghetti against a wall to see what would stick.” Post-pandemic, Loden realized the need for a physical space, opting to buy a building in St. Paul that serves as a store, fulfillment center, and office. It also has hosted workshops, a build-your-own-necklace bar, and an annual holiday market complete with live llamas. The brand opened a second location at Mall of America (MOA) last May, featuring a permanent jewelry bar.
Photo by Tim Gruber
Experience-based elements like these have become integral to Loden’s brand strategy, mirroring trends at MOA and Edina’s Galleria, which now focus on experience-driven stores and events. MOA, which has always had attractions like a theme park and an aquarium, is now home to experience-based stores like the Crayola Experience, Build-A-Bear Workshop, and a Lululemon Experiential Store, which offers a coffee and smoothie bar and yoga classes.
The Galleria “is always thinking of ways to enhance customer shopping experiences,” says marketing director Rachel Oelke. The center hosts its annual Floral Experience in partnership with Bachman’s, a 15-day floral installation throughout the mall, and has also partnered with creative agency LAB MPLS on panel talks and classes. This holiday season, in-store happenings include permanent jewelry events at Madewell, ice cream socials at Filson, and design classes at Pottery Barn.
Edina’s 50th & France is another notable shopping destination, with its mix of local and national retailers lining the intersection. In addition to events like the Edina Art Fair and Vintage Village, an outdoor vintage clothing pop-up, the area’s shops also host unique experiences like styling classes at clothing shop Bumbershute and scent-making workshops at fragrance boutique Senti.
provided by Radisson Blu
MOA has also played host to the pop-up phenomenon. Mich Berthiaume, a specialty retail consultant, has played a key role in the experiential retail landscape at MOA and beyond. Her first project was a local maker pop-up at MOA in 2015—since then, she has worked on various initiatives to reinvigorate downtown Minneapolis, such as leading the Dayton’s Market (returning Nov. 14) and partnering with the 2022 Super Bowl and USA Gymnastics. “[MOA] reached out [with the opportunity], so it started there,” she says. “I brought the concept to the Mall and from then on, I became a part of the shop-local movement.”
This holiday season, from Nov. 29 to Dec. 22, MOA will host a pop-up in partnership with Minneapolis Craft Market. Founded by local entrepreneur and London native Hayley Matthews-Jones in 2015, the event features handmade goods by local makers and artists.
While the Twin Cities has long been home to craft fairs and farmers markets, there weren’t any ongoing makers markets happening regularly throughout the year until Minneapolis Craft Market came along. “Our tagline was ‘meet your maker,’” Matthews-Jones says. “People adopted it immediately. Minnesotans understand the values and benefits of what it means to shop local.” Three years later, she founded Minneapolis Vintage Market, a similar concept focusing on vintage goods. “We were so starved from those few years for human connection,” she says, reflecting on the pandemic’s impact on in-person events. “We’ve seen this bounce back. People have been longing for those points of connection where they can be in community, because we know what it feels like to not have access to that.”
Photo by Darin Kamnetz
Over in the North Loop, MartinPatrick3 continues to thrive. It first opened in 2008 as a small boutique focusing on men’s accessories and furnishings. The shop later moved to a larger location down the street, and now carries a mix of luxury menswear and women’s wear, fine jewelry, gifts, furniture, and home goods. “When Neiman Marcus closed in 2014, it left a vacuum in luxury retail,” says co-owner Dana Swindler. “And we were already heading that direction.”
As many retailers pivoted to meet the clarion call of e-commerce over the past decade, MartinPatrick3 stuck to what it does best: offering an unparalleled in-store shopping experience. “We tried e-commerce, but quickly realized that where we excel is the brick-and-mortar experience and customer service,” says co-owner Greg Walsh. Thanks to its local buying team, MartinPatrick3 has been able to focus on what its clients are looking for. “For us, the customer has always been key.”
Photo by Christa Tousley
“A lot of people are still wanting to go in and try things on, touch and feel the product, and get assistance,” adds Swindler.
The idea of experiential retailing is nothing new to MartinPatrick3, which has been hosting in-store experiences like pop-ups, parties, fashion shows, and even an ice bar in its alley, from the beginning. “The whole experiential thing, that’s part of our DNA,” says Swindler. “No one told us ‘you have to do events.’ We just knew that you have to, to get people into the store.”
A conversation Between Style Editors Past and Present
Emma Enebak, Style Editor of Minnesota Monthly, chats with Jahna Peloquin, our former Style Editor, about their shopping habits.
Emma: Would you say you pretty much thrift everything you wear?
Jahna: At this point, I would say yeah. When you live and breathe it and it’s around you all the time, it’s just natural. If I need something super specific, then I’ll usually go on Poshmark, so I can still find it secondhand.
Emma: Have you ever tried renting? That’s what I’ve been doing lately. I feel like it’s so common to wear something once or twice and then get sick of it, so it has ben a good way to keep things fresh.
Jahna: I actually haven’t. I think it’s something that, if I didn’t have a store, I’d definitely try. It’s a great addition to the circular model of shopping.
Emma: I feel like I’ve never seen you in the same outfit twice. Do you sometimes stand in your closet and think, ‘okay how can I wear this piece again, but in a new way?’
Jahna: For me, it’s really organic. I’m really bad at picking outfits out in advance. I’ll kind of just stand in my closet and think like ‘Oh, I haven’t worn that in a while.’ Like today, I’m wearing a top by this local designer that I haven’t worn in years. I just woke up and thought it felt right with this skirt.
Emma: I’m kind of like that too. Lately I’ve been loving repurposing things to get more use out of them. Like wearing a skirt as a top, or a maxi skirt as a strapless dress. Kind of just getting creative with what I already have.
Jahna: 100%. I always say shopping in your own closet is the most sustainable option.
Emma: It really is. It’s the best digging deep into the archives and realizing, ‘Oh I can wear this again.’ Maybe a trend that circled back or something. But of course, nothing really replaces in-person shopping.
Jahna: I agree. For me, it’s that tactile experience. I need to see the fabric; I need to touch it and try it on. Also, the customer service aspect is irreplicable, especially at small boutiques. People can help you find things that fit your style. It just feels like an experience.
Emma: Totally. When I’m here [Olio Vintage] it feels more like an experience. My friends and I will get coffee on a Saturday and come into the store, and you know, it’s like our activity that day, it’s not just shopping.
Jahna: Like a treasure hunt!
Emma: Exactly.
Jahna: And you can interact with shop owners, share stories, get inspiration.
Emma: Totally. I think the whole exchange really sparks creativity as both a seller and a shopper. Okay, one last thing. This is our Nov/Dec issue, so holidays. What are you most excited to wear or see shoppers wear this season?
Jahna: I’m just excited for festive holiday dresses. I just got this burgundy/velvet Laura Ashley dress, and I literally can’t wait to wear it for holiday parties. The holidays give us such a good excuse to dress up regularly.
Photo by Hayven.co
