My visit to Threadless - for real

The primary destination of our road trip was Chicago. As far as my kids were concerned, a trip to Chicago would be incomplete without a trip to the real-life, bricks and mortar Threadless store. Truth be told, the same could be said for me.

We had barely settled into our hotel room and there was no way the kids would even consider doing anything before making the trek to Threadless, so we did. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you’ll know I’ve been a huge fan of Threadless and how an online community was built around this brand that originally could only be consumed online. I was curious to see how it would translate into the offline world, particularly since most online stores are an extension of an existing offline store, not the other way around.
sorts.



As you can see from the slideshow of my photos, skinnyCorp, the folks behind the Threadless brand, did a great job of translating the spirit of Threadless.com into a 3D format. The friendly staff was exactly what you’d expect and more. The tiny three-level shop was jam-packed with Threadless t-shirt goodness. Oh ya, in addition to a gift or two, my kids and I each bought a t-shirt – mine is called Fall Into the Sun. (Like all Threadless tees, it’s available online today for a mere $9US!)

But there are some differences from the online store:
• A fraction of the styles are available – not surprising considering the huge inventory online.
• New tees are released on Fridays (not Mondays) so you’ll have a head start on the online shoppers if you shop on the weekend.
• StreetTeam points can’t be redeemed here. Instead, shoppers get a reusable bag with their initial purchase that can be reused for $1 off subsequent purchases – a recyclable coupon of sorts.

Now if I could only get the website to accept the photo of me in my new tee all would be well in the world. Seems it logs my purchase history but isn’t able to integrate in-store purchases.

And a quick aside, Threadless seemed to be situated on a block I dubbed “community row” because it’s beside a bike store filled with Specialized bikes and down the street from a bakery with a “Community Divas” cake in the window – check out the picture.

What do you think of Threadless? Do you think it was a good idea for them to open a storefront? If you’ve been there, what other differences have you noticed?