‘The Lines Are Blurred’: How Flexible Leases Are Changing Fashion Brands’ Retail Strategies

In fashion retail, the lines between temporary and permanent are becoming increasingly blurry, as brands opt for shorter, month-to-month leases with no set end date and often transition temporary stores into permanent locations. Instead of opting for either a temporary store with a fixed end date or a permanent store with a recurring lease, fashion brands are opening stores that are somewhere in between. They’re planned for a few weeks, for example, but end up staying open for months, years or indefinitely. “When we open a new space, it’s permanent in the sense that we know we want to be in that market,” said Katie Twidwell, senior director of operations and sales at fashion brand M.M.LaFleur. “But it’s otherwise temporary. The exact location, the inventory, the concept — it all can change. That’s important to us when we look at leases. Traditionally, retail leases are very long, but we try to shy away from that.” Read more at Glossy.