The Mill City Times Interview: West Elm North Loop

Article and photos by Becky Fillinger

Ribbon cutting - photo: West ElmGlobal lifestyle and design brand West Elm will celebrate its grand opening on Thursday, March 5 from 6-8 PM at its new location on the ground floor of the Second + Second development in the North Loop.  The event is open to all and will feature local bites and specialty cocktails (for those over 21), the new spring line and shopping for a cause:  shoppers will receive a 15% discount during the event and a portion of the proceeds will go to Urban Homeworks, a local nonprofit transforming vacant and distressed Twin Cities properties.  Speed up your check-in by rsvp’ing ahead of time.

Ahead of the grand opening, Mill City Times sat down with Hannah Wickberg, spokeswoman for West Elm, to learn more about the company and its vision for the North Loop location. 

Hemp beddingQ: Welcome to the North Loop!  What kinds of challenges do you face when you open a new store?

Hannah: We always partner with a great, local development company to build out our space in new markets. Since no store is exactly the same—and the space footprints vary—we enjoy the challenge of working with our developer, construction partners, and store design team to create a showroom and space that is unique to the market and fits in seamlessly with the neighborhood. The North Loop location has over 11,000 square feet and is on the first floor of a mixed use building.

Decorator aesthetic   

Q: What are you most excited about in this new location?

Hannah: We love the urban location in the North Loop. We’re excited to be part of a diverse mix of retail, dining and cultural opportunities for people to explore while they’re downtown. West Elm is a neighborhood brand with our roots in a neighborhood, so we’re thrilled to continue having a community around us. 

Q: Is there an unmet market you are hoping to serve? And if so, what is it?

Hannah: We look forward to serving the growing community of city dwellers in Minneapolis, from young professionals to established urbanites. We also hope to offer a convenient location for the large community of college students in Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Modern aesthetic 

Q: How do you build an assortment that is relevant to the local market?

Hannah: Two examples of how we keep our retail locations relevant to local markets are our in-store Design Crew Services and our LOCAL assortment. Our Design Crew services offer customers free design consultations in store for everything ranging from floor plans to fabric swatch selections. Our West Elm LOCAL program was launched in 2013, and since its inception has introduced over 900 artisans and their unique pieces to customers across the country. The downtown Minneapolis location will carry a unique selection of locally crafted goods from local Minnesota makers Solid Manufacturing & Kate Arends of Wit + Delight.

Kaloh Stoneware Dinnerware SetsQ: What are your best-selling items?

Hannah: Our unique, modern designs are what we’re best known for. Each customer is coming to us with their own personal style, so that’s why we offer a variety of visual expressions in our assortment.  Our three design aesthetics are on display in the store:  Decorator, Pure and Modern. The styles range from playful, colorful, geometric (modern) to velvets, fur and gleaming (decorator) – with lots of choices in each to customize your home design.

Q: How are you thinking about sustainability?

Hannah: Sustainability is one of West Elm’s core values, and we like to say that each one of our products is consciously designed to make a positive impact. Our assortment features GOTS-certified organic cotton, goods that are Fair Trade Certified™, and furniture made with wood certified to the high industry Forest Stewardship Council standards.  We just celebrated our 5 year partnership anniversary with the Fair Trade label last fall. This commitment makes a difference by ensuring safe working conditions and fair wages.  A portion of the purchase goes back to the factory in the form of a premium. Each factory decides how to spend the premium. For example, our makers in Haiti purchased bicycles for employees who typically walk 2-4 hours daily to and from work. Another partner opened a health clinic, not just for employees, but for the entire community. 

Many of our selections are also handcrafted, sourced from a network of 35+ artisan groups in 15 countries, employing nearly 5,000 makers.

Recently, we expanded our bedding assortment to include a new Fair Trade Certified™ collection of hemp bedding including sheets, duvets, and a coverlet. West Elm is the biggest retailer of hemp for bedroom products. Hemp is generally considered to have a low environmental impact because growing the hemp plant requires significantly less water and land than other conventional bedding materials and does not typically require the use of pesticides.

View more about West Elm’s commitments to responsible retail at westelm.com/commitments.

Q: Are you thi​nking about delivery/supply chain differently for this city location? Do consumers shop a downtown location differently than locations in suburbs?

Hannah: We thoughtfully plan each store’s assortment knowing what the community is shopping for. For example, the downtown Minneapolis store may feature more small-space solutions than a store in Dallas, Texas, which may have more large sectionals and expanded dining tables.

Q: How much autonomy is the individual store given?

Hannah: The local stores have a lot of freedom and are encouraged to exercise their creativity. They are empowered to plan and host pop-up events and workshops in the store and participate in community events outside of the store. The local shopkeepers and stylists know their communities best, so we trust them to serve and relate to their customer base as they see fit.  

With our LOCAL program, we love supporting and teaming up with local artists and makers to provide them a store-front location to showcase their products and reach a diverse audience. We also empower small businesses to use our retail space as a footprint to host events and pop-ups.  

We plan to also get involved in community and neighborhood events, especially in the North Loop. We enjoy being a good neighbor, and that means participating in neighborhood functions – whether it is hosting book clubs, wine nights or fundraising events in our retail footprint. 

West Elm has unique social media accounts for every location. For the North loop, check out Instagram: @westelmmpls and Facebook: @westelmmpls. 

Q: How often do you get new product?

Hannah: West Elm always has something new! We change our assortments with each season, three times per season. Our local makers also come out with new products several times a year.   

Q: What’s your favorite thing about working for West Elm?

Hannah: I love working for a brand that values corporate social responsibility. From being the first home brand to offer Fair Trade certified home goods to innovating a new bedding material with a sustainable hemp option – West Elm is constantly evolving its approach to design and looking for ways to make a positive impact. Our tag line is that we make design accessible – I’m proud to be part of that as it is as it is played out in our stores and online.

Dapper animal salad plates - koala

Q: Does West Elm offer design services and will staff visit a customer's condo or apartment to assist with room layout and design?

Hannah: Yes! West Elm Design Crew offers complimentary, personalized styling and design services for our customers. Our Design Crew can advise you in the store or visit your home for a consultation. There is zero obligation to purchase. The design services can run the gamut of measuring and selecting furniture for a room to choosing appropriate dinnerware for a special occasion.

We also offer installation services for a small fee, from hanging curtains to mounting gallery walls or a TV! For those who prefer to keep things online, we also now offer a free Design Chat function on WestElm.com.

Q: Why did West Elm decide to not open a hotel location in Minneapolis?

Hannah: We don’t have any updates on the status of the hotel. When we have updates to share, we will inform the community.

Q:  Any other information you’d like to share with our readers? 

Hannah: Visit us! Our store hours are Monday - Saturday 10 AM -7 PM and Sunday 11 AM - 6 PM. The store telephone number is 612-445-9378.

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About Becky Fillinger

I’ve been a resident of the Mill District only since July 2019, but have visited the Guthrie, the Farmers Market, restaurants and friends in the area for many years prior to making the leap to Minneapolis. I’ve lived in many places (and climates) in the US and can testify that our cultural events, bicycle and hiking trails, parks and green spaces, museums, diverse neighborhoods and wonderful restaurants put Minnesota and Minneapolis high on my best places list. I’m a member of the Mill City Singers and look forward to our choir practices and performances.

One of my main interests is community - a very broad concept. For me it means bringing people together with common interests to form meaningful relationships. I look forward to reporting on businesses and individuals in our neighborhoods. Feel free to drop me an email at becky_fillinger@hotmail.com with your thoughts and ideas for stories.