Lulujo Opens Flagship Store In Downtown Fredericton
FREDERICTON — A New Brunswick-based company that’s been selling its premium baby products around the world for more than 10 years has opened a flagship store in downtown Fredericton.
Lulujo was founded in 2009 in Fredericton by Dawn Pottier when she made a ring sling for her child. Since then, the brand is carried in thousands of stores worldwide and is known for products like its top-selling multi-functional cotton muslin swaddling blanket.
On Thursday Lulujo opened a retail store of its own at 480 Queen Street in Fredericton, after years of only selling online and to wholesale distributors and retailers.
Pottier says the idea to open a retail store came about during the Covid-19 lockdown when they saw a surge in their online orders in Atlantic Canada.
“We just started to think about how so many customers and people are loyal to a brand now. The landscape has changed so much compared to what it was 10 years ago with brands and retail,” says Pottier.
“We thought that this would be the perfect opportunity now when we know that we have brand loyalty … Why not actually meet some of our customers face-to-face, because we never have. Here we are trying to create products for parents around the world and we rarely get to talk to the person who’s using the products.”
Lulujo also needed more space for inventory, and with the lease on their previous location coming to an end, Pottier said it made sense to simply find a spot that had both more space, and a storefront.
“We needed more space because our online sales were growing, so we needed more space for our inventory,” she says. “If we’re going to have inventory, and we’re selling more online as well, why not just grab a space that has enough space on the street so that customers can come directly in.”
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A flagship store was also an opportunity for more local customers to connect with the brand.
“So many people will say, ‘We can’t even believe Lulujo is from Fredericton. We had no idea,'” says Pottier. “So we wanted to bring that back and have a place for Lulujo that people can come in and see our products and also test out our products.”
The Queen Street store carries all of Lulujo’s products, including limited edition products that may not be carried by their retailers.
“It really does encompass who we are. We’re a small company doing big things. There’s a lot going with Lulujo,” says Pottier. “We’re dealing with distributors in over 40 countries. We’re working with online platforms, and now to have a physical space it’s full circle.”
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