Outdoor Retailer - Winter 2016 - 44

neers of the shop-in-shop concept back in the
1980's, the Hassan family unwittingly paved the
pathway for modern retailers today.
"When we first decided to create separate areas inside our store dedicated to one brand, people thought we were going to fail," says Hassan.
"My brother and I were just some excited kids
working in our uncle's store. We didn't know
any better, and we wanted to try something different than everyone else."
Next up was a skateboard shop, then clothing, and then anything else they thought their
customers would like. If it was different than
what everyone else had, they were interested. Business grew. Footwear News named it
Independent Retailer of the Year in 1992 (and
again in 2003 and 2010). As others started
copying its ideas, The Tannery kept moving in
new directions.
"We have always had an attitude of 'why
not?' So when we decided to start selling more
outdoor gear, it just seemed logical," says buyer Andrew Hampshire, a 24-year employee.
"Arc'teryx next to Ecco shoes might seem illogical to some retail establishments, but to us it
seemed perfect. Winters are brutal in Boston."
Winter shoes next to winter coats just seemed
to make sense.
As the first decade of the new millennium
started to wind down, the country entered

MILLENIALS ARE CHANGING THE WAY RETAILERS
ARE DOING BUSINESS. DECIPHERING THEIR WANTS
AND NEEDS IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES
FACING THE INDUSTRY TODAY.
into an unprecedented recession. In 2008, as
most businesses hunkered down, the Hassans
decided to expand. They have a history of expanding during recessions. First, they left the
basement location in Harvard Square that they
had occupied since 1972 to move into a larger,
flashier retail storefront nearby, while next
door they opened Curated, a custom tennis
shoe store. A year later, in 2009, they opened
a 21,000-square-foot flagship location at 711
Boylston Street in the heart of Boston.
"It was not a decision we made lightly, but we
knew it was time to expand; our concept needed
room to grow," says Hassan. "But we had made
some missteps that we had to overcome."
One such misstep was the initial layout
of the new store near Harvard Square. The
glitzy Fifth Avenue feeling did not appeal to
their Cambridge customers. So they did what
they do best, they revamped the storefront,
tossing most of the custom-designed interior
and returned to a more rustic look. It worked.
Business grew. Soon, customer counts began to

expand and revenue increased.
One thing is constant in the flagship store:
People want to check it out-"Regardless of the
weather the doors are always open inviting customers to come in," says Hassan.
The flagship store is really three separate
stores operating from one location. It is a modern update on the department store concept.
The first floor is wall-to-wall shoes: dress shoes,
work shoes, high-end tennis shoes. As the core
business from day one, footwear is foremost,
accounting for over half The Tannery's revenue. The mix is impressive, Jimmy Choos next
to Birkenstocks, Prada next to Nikes; the cross
pollination of brands invites consumers to examine brands previously unthought-of.
Up a flight of steps you enter Curated-a
concept focused on high-end apparel, footwear, and all of the accouterments accompanying such. Moncler coats mingle with rag &
bone jeans; Yves Saint Laurent and Patagonia
are next to each other. "One of the keys to our
success is we have always realized and catered

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Outdoor Retailer - Winter 2016

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