J.Crew is adding to its brand stable. Moving beyond the iconic main nameplate, the specialty store mainstay now has two new concepts open at the Dallas NorthPark Center: crewcuts and Madewell. crewcuts carries J.Crew-inspired fashions for the little ones while Madewell features casual American basics with a modern twist for today’s twenty-something woman. 

       Both are well-executed, good concepts. The aesthetic of each remains in-line with the J.Crew parent without being too different or too similar, and the operational capabilities dovetail with the needs of the parent brand. Therefore, my recent visit to these stores left me positive on their potential, as I’ll show through the following photos and commentary. 

       The clean, white store façade combined with the smaller-than-average windows immediately communicates that this is a store for the kids. Noticeably absent are the large windows and rich jewel-tones of the typical J.Crew store; this is color palette pulled out of Crayola. Store windows are richly merchandised with multiple products and directive text: “crewcuts. the clothes you love...(slightly smaller)”. There can be no mistake that this is J.Crew for the younger set.

       Upon entering, the strong focus on clear, bright kid-like colors continues with wall paint. Stenciled words highlighting specific product reinforce the feeling of a child’s bedroom, not a store. The presentation is adult in style, but with the smaller sizes and the more miniature fixtures, its Lilliputian feel is unmistakable.

       The clothes themselves strike a good balance between knock-around roughhousing and dinner-table presentable. Different items spill forth from every corner on the main floor – skirts, waffle tees, sweater vests, cords. Indeed, the merchandising is designed to help parents work around their kids’ short attention spans, with touches such as the product tableau outside the dressing rooms. This area is specifically set up for easy grab of those ‘oops, I forgot’ items such as an extra skirt, a bag for the little girl’s baby doll, final tees and polos.

       What is most striking about crewcuts is how this brand can help the overall J.Crew parent. First, crewcuts can help the company create greater scale and therefore gain operational efficiencies through consolidated fabric buys and smart remnant/ end-of-bolt usage. Thus, not only is the crewcuts product itself likely very profitable but total company margins should also improve due to the total scale increase. Second, rolling out crewcuts into larger J.Crew stores solves a long-standing real estate problem: too much space for the current line-up of men’s and women’s, not enough extra space to sub-lease or give back to the landlord. Therefore, crewcuts can finally give that extra square footage an enhanced revenue-generating capability commensurate with the rest of the assortment.

       Standing out from the stores around it through color and usable, multi-paned windows, Madewell strongly announces its presence. The sheer number of looks merchandised in the windows also makes Madewell stand out from the pack. Such a forthright display instantly gives shoppers a total feel for what’s in this store; they know immediately whether they’re interested in entering. Traffic is thus already ‘qualified’ to drive conversion.

       The hand script of the logo very effectively contextualizes the first in-store merchandising view. This brand wants the shopper to feel personal authenticity – not a mall chain, as my sales associate stated, “but a local boutique.” The product looks wholly different from its J.Crew parent, even as the categories overlap. Right now, it does feel local with just one location. Can Madewell make that feeling last as new stores open? 

       This store visually hits you at every angle. From the framed, vintage original dungarees touching the ceiling to the mid-layer shadow-box tableaus to the 24 linear feet of jeans hitting the ground, no space is left without a visual statement. Moreover, the usage of 3-D space is also extreme as mannequins outfitted every which way are placed throughout the store. In the front area alone, eight mannequins display a wide array of looks utilizing nearly every category available. A strong statement indeed.

       To finish up the Madewell experience, ‘hand stitched’ white and navy cloth bags envelop purchases. Borrowed from higher-end, custom stores, such as New York’s Seize Sur Vingt, this packaging technique reinforces the idea of authentic, local product and brings the brand full-circle from the script logo at store entrance, keeping even the exit brand-right.