Kim Kardashian’s knickers, loungewear and shapewear company Skims is preparing to open its first permanent locations in the upcoming year as part of its expansion into both domestic and foreign retail sectors.
In the first half of 2024, its flagship store in Los Angeles will open, followed by one in New York. The 5,000-square-foot store will be located in West Hollywood on Sunset Boulevard close to well-known streetwear stores like Supreme and Kith.
“Kim and I can envision a future where years from today there’s a Skims store anywhere in the world you’d find an Apple store or a Nike store,” said Jens Grede, co-founder and CEO of Skims.
Skims began as a D2C business in 2019, but since then, it has expanded into physical retail by collaborating with establishments like Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue. In recent years, Skims has embraced transient shop-in-shop concepts in places like London’s Selfridges and New York’s Rockefeller Centre.
Executives from Skims intend to open at least four outlets in the future year. They are considering cities with thriving local tourism industries, such Dallas, Atlanta, and Miami. Additionally, Skims is thinking about opening global flagship stores after experiments in Paris and Hong Kong. Nearly 20 per cent of the customers on Skims’ online store are foreigners.
The business has expanded beyond shapewear bodysuits into categories including pyjamas and swimwear, which has led to a significant contribution from knickers sales. Skims is getting ready to expand its product line by introducing a men’s brand in October.
In contrast to the almost US $ 500 million in net sales the previous year, Skims expects to attain net sales of roughly US $ 750 million in 2023. Grede claims that the company has so far in the current year seen a promising year-over-year growth rate of 75 per cent.
