An online retailer is preparing to open its first bricks-and-mortar store on Marlow High Street.

Sosandar, a clothing brand aimed at women over 30 who want to feel “sexy, feminine and chic” will open its first two in-person stores at 22 Marlow High Street and in Chelmsford, Essex, in September.

The retailer, which is loved by TV personalities Holly Willoughby and Fearne Cotton, was founded by co-CEOs Julie Lavington and Alison Hall in 2016 after years in fashion journalism left them disillusioned with the trendiness, quality and affordability of the clothing on offer to women of their age. 

The Marlow store is one of 50 that will be rolled out across the UK in the next three to five years after Sosandar recorded a loss of £0.3 million in the year to March 31 – indicative of the downward trend in popularity of online shopping after the COVID pandemic.

Sosandar's foray into in-person retail was trialled by a partnership with Sainsbury’s last year, the success of which seems to have bolstered Lavington and Hall to aim high and wide in their expansion project.

Indeed, Lavington told The Times that feedback from customers about the new store openings had been overwhelmingly positive, with “virtually 100 per cent” in support of the move because they “like being able to do both (online and in-person shopping)”.

Hall also confirmed that the plans were a response to figures showing that 60 per cent of British fashion purchases were made in person, adding: “It makes sense for us not to just play into the 40 per cent that’s online.”

The current shopfront versus CGI projection (Image: Buckinghamshire Council)

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The new shop will inherit, largely unchanged, the former India Jane unit in Marlow – a luxury homeware brand that shut its doors last year.

A planning application submitted to Buckinghamshire Council this month proposed two signs at the front of the new shop, one hanging and one mounted, and confirmed Sosandar’s intention to make no changes to its interior save for a fresh lick of paint to “give (the premises) a cleaner look”.

The brand’s website states that each piece of clothing is made in an “in-house design studio in limited runs” and describes its ethos as creating “quality clothes you can move in, work in (and) play in”.

Prices range from £18 for accessories and £35 for shirts to around £100 for dresses and jumpsuits, with speciality leather goods just over the £200 mark.

Marlow High Street will undergo a few changes in the coming months, with Sosandar joining luxury leatherwear company R. M. Williams as new retail arrivals and popular chain pub Wetherspoon is set to open at Market Place in September. Which newcomer are you most excited about?