Why Fashion And Beauty Brands Are Setting Their Sights On Austin

Fashion and beauty retailers are following in the footsteps of publishers like Condé Nast and BuzzFeed by setting up shop in Austin. Part of the appeal is increased foot traffic, thanks to significant population growth: Austin’s seen a 16 percent population boost since 2010, including a 2.9 percent jump in the last year alone. It’s continual rise as a cultural hub — thanks to events like SXSW and Austin City Limits — has contributed, too, cementing Austin as a city to look to for all things new and cool. “Since the early 2000s, Austinites rallying behind the ‘Keep Austin weird’ slogan have made a conscious effort to maintain the city’s reputation as a haven for small, unique brands and businesses,” said Gil Eyal, the founder of influencer marketing platform HYPR. That same quirkiness, however, fits “up-and-coming fashion and beauty brands like a glove.” Indeed, Warby Parker opened its first Austin storefront in August, in the hip SoCo neighborhood. Modcloth followed suit after testing out a two-month pop-up in the Texas city, opening its first brick-and-mortar location there in January. Read more at Digiday.