Djerf Avenue opened its first permanent brick-and-mortar store in downtown New York City on Saturday, marking the direct-to-consumer brand's shift from pop-ups and events into a fixed retail channel at 25 Bond Street.

The Swedish label, founded in 2019 by influencer and chief creative officer Matilda Djerf, built its business online around wardrobe staples — blazers, tailored trousers, T-shirts and printed loungewear — and has since extended into home decor, including printed bed linens, and beauty with body, hair care and styling products. The New York store stocks both categories in designated areas, alongside bestsellers such as the Breezy shirt, loungewear and plush robes.

Djerf framed the store as the natural next step after six years of direct-to-consumer operations. "In the beginning, when we started while having no prior experience in the fashion industry or running a business, we knew right away that we wanted to be direct-to-consumer because we wanted to understand the customers' behavior," she told WWD. "We also wanted to be able to share information about our factories and sizing, with eight sizes online, always. Being six years in, we got to the point where we were ready for a store."

She also pointed to demand-side logic. "I also think consumers now come from a place where everything has been so online for so long, especially with the pandemic, that I feel everyone is craving human connection," Djerf said.

The company tested physical formats before committing to a lease. Over the years it has run more than 50 community events and eight pop-ups across New York, London, Los Angeles, Sweden and Norway. Its 2023 New York pop-up drew lines around the block and ended with a community runway show at the Guggenheim on Sept. 3 — a date the brand now treats as an annual unofficial holiday. This year, the company marked that date by delivering special keys to 100 community members, inviting them to shop the store first, with a DJ and bakery catering through its ongoing partnership with the Lower East Side Girls Club.

"New York is such an important city for Djerf Avenue — we've had deep connections with our customers here from special events to pop-ups. When we discussed our first permanent store, New York was always a given," Djerf said of the location.

The founder personally designed the store interior in partnership with Leap, the retail platform operator. She described the space as warm and homey with Scandinavian touches rather than minimalistic, featuring wooden fixtures, signature hand-painted prints on curtains and bench seating, plus a lounge area. Store exclusives at launch include key chains, a deck of cards and water bottles — product designed to give existing customers items they cannot buy online. External brand partners for the opening activations include Bluestone Lane and Leon's Bagels.

"I think that if you come into the store completely with no clue what Djerf Avenue is, I think you will get a true representation of what our brand is. But also, if you're a returning customer, there will be items that you haven't seen before or that you haven't been able to shop before, which was really important for us as well," she added.

The opening follows a turbulent stretch for the brand. In 2024, 11 anonymous employees accused Djerf of workplace mistreatment, including fat-shaming and bullying. She issued a formal apology on social media with a plan to improve internal business and work culture. Since then, the company has worked to rebuild consumer trust and this summer appointed Johanna Axén as chief executive officer, after Axén built out the brand's beauty division.

The store launch is the first major test of whether Djerf Avenue's community-driven physical formats can convert into sustained full-price retail volume, and further permanent locations will likely depend on how the 25 Bond Street site performs.