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In Tinseltown, retailers don’t just want your credit card anymore — they want your entire afternoon.A wave of brands across Los Angeles are morphing their brick-and-mortar stores into sprawling lounge destinations, complete with specialty espresso bars, aesthetic food and soft serve counters, comfy couches and breezy courtyards.Dubbed “brewtiques,” these hybrid spaces tap a major shift in modern retail: turning clothing boutiques into social gathering hubs where customers can linger alongside racks of pricey designer threads.For many shoppers, the cafe is the primary hook.
Propelled by viral TikTok video and Instagram feeds, the buzz around these in-store coffee spots acts as low-stakes entry points for newcomers who might never have walked in to browse the clothes.But now, they’re eagerly showing up for the full branded lifestyle.For some, getting an iced latte or matcha in a recognizable branded cup can be part of the appeal — an affordable, highly Instagrammable way to buy into a fashion label’s lifestyle without necessarily dropping big money on clothes.
The latest entrant is cult LA denim brand Mother, which recently opened the doors to its first flagship in Beverly Hills.The 3850-square-foot store is designed less like a traditional boutique, and more like a groovy 1970’s home, complete with mirrored boudoir-style fitting rooms, curved walls, a coffee bar and a sunken circular conversation pit where shoppers are encourage to settle in — with bathrooms and free WiFi built into the experience.“We never wanted the store to feel like somewhere you walk into, buy something and leave,” Mother co-founder Lela Becker told The Post.
“We thought about the space almost more like a house or a clubhouse than a traditional retail environment, and if you’re inviting people into your house, you should probably offer them something to drink.”Asked if the beverage hook gets customers to stick around, Becker didn’t mince words: “It’s still e...