PacSun is expanding its gender-neutral PacSun Kids concept into the brick-and-mortar space with a store at the Mall of America, according to Shop Eat Surf. The shop, which will sell a line of items designed for children ages four to 14, will be located next to its existing space in the shopping center.
The collection covers a wide range of apparel, including graphic tees, bottoms and outerwear, all designed with an emphasis on sustainability, self-expression and comfort. The shop also will carry other brands that “embody the ethos of gender-free dressing,” including Vans, Champion and Santa Cruz.
PacSun first introduced its gender-free category in fall 2020 before adding a dedicated kid’s line in July 2021. PacSun Kids apparel is available at pacsun.com and was featured at special pop-up shops in PacSun’s downtown Los Angeles and New York City flagship stores in August before the collection received its own dedicated space.
“At PacSun, we want our consumers to be free to express themselves and choose what they want to wear without boundaries, which was the driving factor behind introducing our PacSun Kids label, completely without gender,” said Brie Olson, President at PacSun in a statement. “Expanding our offerings at the store level at Mall of America, where we’ve offered our main collection for years, was very important to us to continue empowering our youngest consumers to pick what they want from a PacSun label and store created just for them.”
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The retailer has been gradually expanding its gender-neutral offerings over the past year. The most recent addition came in September 2021 with a collection of T-shirts, sweatpants, cargo and slim-fit pants in solid colors and tie-dye prints called Colour Range. The eco-friendly line launched with an influencer campaign that included participation from WILLOW, Zendaya Taylor and Reilly Patton.
The new store will have its own experiential twist with a seasonal in-store QR code for a special holiday Instagram filter that lets shoppers feature themselves alongside an animated deer in photo and selfie mode. Additionally, an as-of-yet-unnamed influencers will host a live shopping stream to offer shoppers advice on finding the right gift.
PacSun isn’t the only retailer launching gender-neutral apparel. In July, Abercrombie & Fitch introduced a dedicated gender-neutral assortment and concept store for its Gilly Hicks brand in Columbus, Ohio. The shop doesn’t have separate men’s and women’s departments, but instead organizes its inventory by fabric type and end use. Select Gilly Hicks store-in-store concepts inside Hollister locations also were reorganized in this manner.
