Southern Tide Opening New Branded Shops in Key Independent Retailers

by Harry Sheff

Southern Tide will be opening branded shops in several of its best accounts this year, including Country Club Prep in Charlottesville, Va. and Byron in Kansas City. Also, Island Sport in Kiawah Island, S.C. will be opening a free-standing Southern Tide shop in the same style.

Southern Tide shop concept

The concept debuted at Beau Outfitters’ Charlotte, N.C. store in December.

“Southern Tide has a unique grasp on the style and manner of the Southern man,” said Beau Outfitters co-founder Ryan Switzer in a statement. “The brand is very popular with our customers, so having a dedicated shop was a no-brainer. We were pleased to see how it drew in customers during the holidays and are looking forward to being ‘Southern Tide Central’ this spring.”

M. Dumas & Sons in Charleston, S.C., an early retailer for the nine-year-old brand, will be updating their Southern Tide shop to the new concept.

Southern Tide says that it will have plans for between six and eight more branded shops in favored retailers it’s calling “Admiral Accounts” by the end of the third quarter.

“Working with these ‘best in class’ stores offers Southern Tide a major opportunity to not only partner more deeply with retailers who understand our brand and our customer, but also to create a complete expression of the Southern Tide lifestyle,” said Southern Tide CEO Christopher Heyn in a statement. “We are honored that they think highly enough of us that they are relinquishing this valuable real estate, so we’ve created an environment that is impactful and a real showcase. The Southern Tide Admiral Stores not only look great, they also function as a powerful sales tool for the retailers’ teams.”

Southern Tide was founded by Allen Stephenson in 2006 in Greenville, South Carolina as a polo shirt company. It has since become a lifestyle brand for men, women and children across multiple categories including apparel, footwear, accessories and home.