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End of the line for Chic Chik and Boarderline
Urban apparel and skateboard shop closing its doors Thandiwe Vela Northern News Services Published Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Fifteen years after the business began catering to the 16 to 25-year-old market from a corner in the Langlois gift shop, many young people across the city will be sad to see the urban clothing shop go. "I've had a lot of people say that they're really sad that it's going because it's a whole generation that grew up with it," owner Joni Walker said, noting the business has been successful over the years mainly because of its dedication to its market. "We just found there was a real need for that age group," she said. "That's, I think why we've been successful over the years, is we haven't wandered from that. We've stayed true to that." Among the longtime patrons who flocked the 49 Street shop in its last few days for clothing, wallets, jewellery, sunglasses, hats, jackets, skate and long boards that cannot be found anywhere else, was Erin Shae, who lamented the end of Boarderline. "It's going to be sadly missed, for sure," said Shae, who shopped at the store throughout her time as a student at St. Patrick high school. "It's been in Yellowknife for a long time, and there's a lot of unique and different clothes that you can get here that you can't get anywhere else." Lines exclusive to the shop including Krew and Volcom brand jeans, might be picked up by other retailers in the city, Walker said. While the business was strong for many years, Walker noticed a slow-down in the last three years, due to several factors, including the slowing economy, a culture shift to more online shopping, high rental costs, and the general decline of the city's downtown. "I'm OK with it but it's sad for Yellowknife because there's less and less all the time," Walker said. "Downtown is lacking in a huge way for retail. They need to really look at the whole downtown area because if they can't find a way to keep people coming downtown to shop, there's going to be more stores closing." The main factor in Walker's decision to close the shop however, is to spend more time with family. "I've been doing this a long time and would like to spend time with my grandkids," she said. Patrons of the boutique have until the end of the month to pick up their favourite brands, as Walker continues to clear the remaining inventory with a major closing out sale.
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