Why Pajar Chose Soho for Its Debut US Flagship & What’s Next for Its Brick-and-Mortar Expansion
Pajar Canada has sold its high-end footwear throughout the U.S. for decades. Now the company has a brick-and-mortar retail presence of its own stateside.
Last week, Pajar opened the doors of its debut U.S. flagship, a 2,500-square-foot space in New York City’s fashion-driven Soho neighborhood. The store, located at 114 Wooster St., is surrounded by other staples in footwear and apparel, including another northern native, Canada Goose.
More from Footwear News
Did the US-China Trade Spat Inadvertently Help Manufacturers Limit Coronavirus Damage?
How Pajar Canada Is Adapting Its Old-School Values for Today's Tech-Driven World
“We wanted to be here because this is the place where we feel our brand is going to be best shown throughout the world,” Pajar Canada president and CEO Jacques Golbert told FN. “Soho is a phenomenal area for our type of merchandise. We have quite a lot of competition around us, all the Canadians are here, but we feel that we’re bringing something different. We started off as a shoe company, had a lot of success in our country, and now is the time for us to promote our brand worldwide.”
The flagship will feature its latest and greatest in footwear, apparel and accessories, including both technical and fashion-focused looks. For the opening, Pajar stocked the store with its robust fall ’21 range, as well as a customer favorite: winter coats for dogs.
Courtesy of Johnny Foto
Looking ahead, Pajar VP of product development and marketing Elie Man said the location will also serve as a laboratory for new products, which includes collaborations done with designers in the high-fashion space as well as technical outdoor companies.
As for the decor, Pajar brought staple Canadian elements to Soho, including cozy sheepskin furniture, a toboggan as a bench, an alpine silhouette laser-cut onto the marble cash desk, the brand’s vintage signature illustration of iconic Canadian imagery in a dressing room and more. Also, photos from the family’s 58-year history in the shoe business appear throughout, serving as a nod to its rich heritage.
“Being that our company was established in 1963, we wanted mid-century modern inspiration,” Man said. “A lot of the flash harkens back to our history and the heritage of Pajar being a family-owned company with over five generations developing footwear.”
Courtesy of Johnny Foto
Pajar has also made a significant investment in its retail staff, hiring people with experience at top-tier names in footwear and fashion such as Diesel and Dsquared2 to ensure its story is properly told.
Although this marks Pajar’s stateside debut, the company has more brick-and-mortar expansion in the works globally. Pajar SVP Michel Golbert said in addition to recently opened shop-in-shops in Japan department stores, two monobrand stores are slated to launch in China next month (with another scheduled for February 2022), and the brand is looking to add shop-in-shops in Europe and India.
Also, there’s more to come in the U.S.
“We’re always looking ahead, and in the next couple of years we’ll be opening up some stores in cold-weather areas like Chicago and in the Boston area,” Michel Golbert said.
Jacques Golbert added, “We have confidence in our brand and we’re going to move forward in a dramatic way. We’ve been selling to the United States for many years, but now is the time to showcase our full collection and our lifestyle in the U.S.”
The Pajar Canada flagship in Soho is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. ET to 7 p.m. ET, and Sunday from 12 p.m. ET to 7 p.m. ET.
Courtesy of Johnny Foto
Courtesy of Johnny Foto
Courtesy of Johnny Foto
Best of Footwear News
Everything You Need to Know About the Best Black Friday Shoe Deals of 2021
Nordstrom's Anniversary Sale Is Now Open to the Public — Shop Our 15 Favorite Shoe Deals
Sign up for FN's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
