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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Downtown shopping is getting a major boost as the proprietor behind For Men Only tries his hand at women's fashion.

Barry Neary, who also owns Flowers North in the YK Centre, has now opened Damsels in Blue Jeans - a women's denim shop - also on the lower level of the mall.

"I enjoy doing clothing and I think there's enough people doing men's clothing in town but there is a bit of a void for lady's wear in regards to the brands I have here," Neary said, listing Calvin Klein, Mavi, and Guess among the new clothing store's offerings. "I've been doing the men's, but nobody's doing the ladies."

The store aims to fill the gap left by the closing of Chic Chik and Boarderline earlier this year, Neary said - catering to the teens to early 30s market.

Neary and his niece Andrea Thivierge, who is manager of the boutique, considered a number of different names for the business, including Damsels in Dis-dress, before settling on Damsels in Blue Jeans.

"I think it says it's a ladies denim store," Neary said.

While the closing of Chic Chik was attributed to a decline in the downtown retail market, Neary and Thivierge say they are comfortable and confident about the location.

"I think downtown with all the nice coffee shops, it's really easy on a Saturday to go grab a coffee and walk down the street and go see all the shops," Thivierge said, adding most people still work downtown, so the store has also seen strong traffic Mondays through Fridays during office hours.

"Everyone is really excited about it, basically, everyone is responding with you know, 'Yellowknife needed this,'" Thivierge said of the need for more shopping variety.

"Very true," said Victoria Velez about a shortage of women's clothing options in the city, as she tried on jeans at the new store Saturday afternoon.

While Velez has taken advantage of shops down south while travelling, she still prefers to buy local, she said.

"I think for the most part in Yellowknife, people do like to shop with local businesses where possible," Thivierge said.

Finding and keeping the staff for the new store smiling has been "easy," said Neary, who also has the advantage of cross-training his staff from his other two YK Centre businesses.

"You have to pay and then you get the people," Neary said. "I find if you treat them nice, they stick around."

Neary, who has lived in Yellowknife for 40 years and operated businesses in the city since the 1980s, plans to leave the store to 25-year-old Thivierge when he retires and moves away in the next few years.

Thivierge said she is excited to take over the store.

"(With Damsels in Blue Jeans,) I see basically having a business as established as the men's store, fully stocked with good clientele," she said of her vision for the store down the line.

"Clientele is really important. You get people coming in the store and you're forming your relationship with them, you're giving them the time, you know how things fit them, you know what they like, and they come back."

That's really important, she said, adding she has been taking notes on how her uncle has successfully run For Men for the past 15 years.

"It's like retail school," she said.

Damsels, which has soft-launched with a small inventory including tops, bottoms, and outerwear, will be fully stocked in the fall, and will also offer shoes and accessories, Thivierge said Saturday.

"Obviously, ladies like to shop so a lot of it's gone already."

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