Crabapple Kids Boutique Opens New Storefront On Fredericton’s Northside
FREDERICTON— After being forced out of its home at the Northside Market due to Covid-19, a Fredericton business specializing in kids clothing is back with a new brick and mortar location.
Crabapple Kids Boutique had its grand opening on October 4. The new location is tucked between Shoppers Drug Mart and Papa John’s at 269 Main Street in Fredericton.
Owner Angela Orfei began the business as a stay-at-home mom when she moved to Fredericton.
“I have two children now, and back when my boys were young, there were no gently used clothing stores for kids in Fredericton,” said Orfei. “So I had some time and I just thought I would try it out. So it basically started out as a hobby.”
In its inception, the business comprised of a few gently-used kids clothes at a booth in the Northside Market. This quickly evolved to a 2000 square foot shop in the Northside Market.
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When Covid struck, the sudden closures of food vendors and other small businesses forced Orfei to vacate. Despite the struggles of an unexpected move, Orfei said it was ultimately beneficial as Main Street is better for business.
The store now works in tandem with the website, which supported the business through the pandemic.
“I started to take pictures of every single item and posted all the clothing online as well, which was thousands and thousands of items. … You can shop 24/7 online, you can pick it up curbside, we can ship it. There are so many different options to purchase right now,” said Orfei.
Online orders were fulfilled through curbside pick-up and shipping across Canada. Orfei attributes her success during the pandemic to her loyal customer base.
“It was at that point where they were saying, ‘only go out for essential items’, and our sales skyrocketed,” said Orfei. “It made me really happy that people thought of us as an essential.”
Despite the ongoing pandemic, Orfei knew she needed to re-open. Though Crabapple Kids offers numerous new items, including an increase in boutique pieces, the best-sellers continue to be gently-used clothing. Orfei established a trade-in program for clothing that was reintegrated with the store opening.
“We have a very good reputation that has developed over the years. I discovered that we have a very loyal following. … We just started accepting clothing about two weeks ago. So, we didn’t accept it for six months, and my customers basically held on to their items until I was open again,” said Orfei.
Although rapid adaptation has enabled the success of Crabapple Kids Boutique throughout Covid, the company still faced setbacks.
“It’s been devastating … realistically sales have been down 30-40 percent,” said Orfei.
With the closure of the Northside Market location, Orfei was forced to lay off two employees in March, however, the new store opening has enabled Orfei to rehire them.
With the new store, opening sales are beginning to rise. The new store on Main Street is open seven days a week, compared to the Northside Market location which was open only Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Orfei is hopeful of the revenue she often receives during the Christmas season.
“Our goal was to be open in October because it’s fourth quarter, which is generally our busiest time of year, heading into Christmas. So everything worked out perfectly,” said Orfei.