Outerknown Opening 4 New Stores
Eco-conscious California lifestyle brand Outerknown is expanding its retail footprint.
Co-founded by pro-surfer Kelly Slater and creative director John Moore in 2015, the men’s and women’s apparel brand has announced plans to open four new stores across, adding to its presence in Boston, Mass., New York’s SoHo neighborhood, Vermont and Malibu, El Segundo and Lemoore, Calif. The brand has broken ground on three new storefronts in its home state, located in Marin County, Carlsbad and Palo Alto, Calif., which will open between late October and December, as well as one in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., opening in spring of 2024. The shopping district is home to flagship stores from DTC brands including Faherty, Nisolo and Everlane.
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Designed with Starch Creative, the stores will showcase Outerknown’s commitment to sustainability through immersive retail spaces and experiences. Each location will be customized, featuring hangers and fixtures by Saitex’s Stelapop, which upcycles denim scraps into home goods and furniture, as well as paper-paste mannequins by Pasqual Arnella, reclaimed Nova Scotia hemlock log flooring made by York, and art installations made with rope reclaimed from the ocean, by Santa Cruz-based artist and environmental scientist Ethan Estess.
Outerknown said it will tailor the assortment to each store’s location, including items such as its signature Blanket Shirt, made from heavyweight organic cotton, Social Environmental Accountability (S.E.A.) jeans and jumpsuits made with organic cotton and linen, and recycled Apex Trunks. It will feature climate-beneficial sweatpants and T-shirts made from California-grown Regenerative Organic Certified cotton, which first launched in March as a part of Outerknown’s California Series. The stores will also offer customization stations, where customers can personalize their purchases with embroidery.
“These new retail spaces are a true celebration of community,” Slater said this week. “Many of these spots are places I love to visit and feel personally connected to.” According to the co-founder, the locations were chosen in part because of their connection to California creatives like Estess and York.
“Good planets are hard to find, and at Outerknown, we are working tirelessly to protect the one we’ve got,” he added. “That takes getting everyone onboard.”
In looking at options for “this next iteration of Outerknown’s retail presence,” Moore said the brand wanted to be in places “where there are folks who believe in what the brand stands for—a commitment to responsible business, courageous change and great clothing.”
“Outerknown’s expansion in retail has been strategically developed with a systems minded approach that allows us to maximize utility of each space and bring a unique brand essence to every location,” Starch Creative senior creative director Kelso Davis said. “From the innovative materials that turn apparel production scraps into build materials, to the build quality and nuanced detail in every aspect of the fixture system, these new retail stores are a testament to the brand’s commitment to fostering a symbiotic relationship between its product, spaces, and core values.”
Outerknown will open its Marin Country Mart location on Oct. 27, followed by a store at the Forum Carlsbad mall in Carlsbad on Nov. 25. The Stanford Shopping Center store in Palo Alto will open in December, and the Georgetown store will open early next year.
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