London Inc. Winter 2023 - 27

FOR SOME BUSINESSES, being able to go online-only
has a certain appeal: low overhead, flexibility and none
of those pesky rent cheques to cut for the brick-andmortar
location.
These days, the 'online experience' is highly prized,
an often obsessively engineered attempt to translate all
the things that define a brand into digital code. Indeed,
during the pandemic, being able to do so effectively often
meant the difference between growth and a going-outof-business
sale.
But for Os & Oakes, the child-and-adult clothing
retailer started by Londoner Erika Oakes and her
brother Michael in 2016, the opposite has always had
the most appeal.
Their first few children's clothing lines, launched back
in 2016 and 2017, had been a success, selling out quickly,
Leveraging the traditional store to
boost customer value, Os & Oakes
unlocks the hidden value of brickand-mortar
retail by KIERAN DELAMONT
and the online-only business was growing - especially
as they expanded into adult-sized versions of the simple,
locally-made items, which proved a hit.
Oakes decided to take a stab at running an in-person
store. The Os & Oakes location on Adelaide Street,
opened in early 2019, let them experiment with in-person
retailing and figuring out what their identity would
be in the real world, as opposed to the virtual one.
The All-New 2023 X1 - Now In Stock!.
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WINTER 2023 | londonincmagazine.ca | 27

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London Inc. Winter 2023

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