Princess Polly, a Gen Z beloved brand from Australia, has big plans for the U.S.
The brand, which opened a 3,370-square-foot store in Westfield Century City in Los Angeles last September, is planning additional West Coast stores in Scottsdale, Ariz.; Santa Clara, Calif., and San Diego, in addition to Boston, building on the success of the first location, the company said.
Princess Polly, which targets female customers between the ages of 15 and 25, sells trendy dresses, tops, shoes and accessories. The brand has a constant stream of inspirational social media content and provides new and affordable merchandise daily.
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Each new store will offer more than 250 Princess Polly apparel looks and more than 200 accessories and footwear styles. The walls will be decorated with selfie mirrors and colorful digital screens, and the stores will host both influencer and customer-focused events meant to foster the brand’s connection to its community IRL.
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Husband-and-wife team Wez and Eirin Bryett, co-chief executive officers, launched Princess Polly as a retail store on Australia’s Gold Coast in 2005. In 2010, the brand switched to online when direct-to-consumer sales became popular. In 2018, the Bryetts sold a majority interest in Princess Polly to private equity firm Summit Partners, based in Boston, to help expand the brand into the U.S. and elsewhere. The firm also acquired other DTC fashion businesses, which it housed under incubator A.k.a. Brands, a business that went public in 2021. The other lines include Culture Kings, Petal & Pup and Mnml.
“Our U.S. customers have fully embraced our first Princess Polly store in Los Angeles, and we are excited to expand into new cities on the West and East coasts,” said Eirin Bryett. “True to the Princess Polly identity, the new stores will feature fun and engaging displays and countless must-have looks and styles, evoking an overall sense of boldness and excitement.”
The brand will open in Scottsdale’s Fashion Square on Sept. 8, San Diego’s Fashion Valley at the end of September, Boston’s Newbury Street around October and Santa Clara’s Valley Fair this winter. To connect with the brand’s student customer base, Princess Polly will set out on road shows to each location’s nearby college campuses and student hangouts for giveaways and exclusive tokens that can only be redeemed in-store.
“Growing Princess Polly’s physical retail footprint across the U.S. reflects our commitment to listening to our customers and delivering an unmatched in-store customer experience,” said Wez Bryett. “Princess Polly is a high-growth global brand that’s capturing the attention of more and more loyal customers, and we view these store openings as an opportunity to introduce new customers to our in-person brand experience. The four new stores will give fans a chance to touch and feel our products and to physically interact with the brand they’ve come to love online.”
To determine where it would open stores, the Bryetts looked at data from social media, focus groups and more. “We carefully choose locations where existing and new customers already spend their time,” Eirin Bryett said. The company is eyeing more store openings for 2025, she said.
Princess Polly employs a social-first strategy that allows it to connect with its Gen Z shopper base, she said. “Princess Polly lives within the Gen Z culture and has become the obvious choice for all things trending,” she said.
The brand’s clothes start at around $24 in price and range up to around $90 for occasionwear styles.
The line is manufactured in China, India and Mexico.
As for global store expansion, she said their physical retail focus remains in the U.S., and there are no stores yet in Australia, although that’s on the road map. She noted that Princess Polly is available at Boathouse Stores across Canada. The brand is available globally through their online store, and they are focusing on increasing their presence in the U.K. with enhanced marketing efforts and optimization of the U.K. customer experience.
For the year ended Dec. 31, 2023, A.k.a. generated net sales of $546,258, an 11 percent decline from $611,738 for the prior year. The company had a net loss of $98,886 versus a net loss of $176,697 a year ago. The sales decline was attributed to adverse macroeconomic conditions in Australia and New Zealand.