Ever wanted to order clothes from the United States to Toronto, and given up because of the hassle or they just don't deliver here? A new store is now making it easy get stuff delivered from America, with a model that's almost like shopping at a regular boutique.
Reach E-Boutique has opened in Toronto, a one-stop shop for American online shopping, even from stores that don't deliver to Canada. They also make it easy to return items instantly: finally, a solution for all those hauls where you end up not liking most of what you bought.
All you have to do to make US shopping more convenient for yourself is sign up for Reach, shop online on US websites like you normally would and attach your order details.
Then, your shipment is delivered to the physical Reach storefront where you can try things on in one of their dressing rooms, return what you don't want, get a refund and leave with only what you want. They take care of everything so you don't have to deal with the usual headache of returning things across the border.
Reach business manager Anne Nguyen used to love driving across the border to go shopping with her family in Buffalo, falling in love with American designers but finding herself frustrated when her favourite brands wouldn't ship to Canada.
She started up the concept during the pandemic when e-commerce started gaining popularity, and fast, working on the project starting in April and opening the Reach store in August.
"We're aiming to encourage cross-border e-commerce for people who do a lot of online shopping. We created the store to be a comfortable environment, ensure customer satisfaction, and to be an all-inclusive concierge service. We have ergonomic workstations for members and they can try on their outfits in our Instagrammable changerooms," Nguyen tells blogTO.
"The return and exchange rates are high in the fashion industry, so we wanted to simplify that process for our customers and also make very clear the amount of duties and taxes they will be paying. We're a resource for our customers, they can ask us anything about cross-border shopping, currency conversions, landed costs."
It works both ways, too: have a friend or relative you're sending regular packages too? Have your own small business and feeling gutted by shipping rates?
Reach actually offers shipping rates to specific cities in Canada and the US for packages up to five pounds that are cheaper than Fedex and UPS by up to 62 per cent.
"We just introduced box forwarding," says Nguyen. "So, you can order from US brands that don't ship to Canada using our US forwarding address."
The system is currently operating on a trail membership basis, with three months free with a minimum of five orders, filling out surveys for each one. The plan is to eventually charge $9.99 for a monthly membership.
"We're building our base of brand partnerships right now by offering US clothing companies a co-marketing initiative in order to boost their market presence in Canada and handle their shipping," says Nguyen.
"We're open to other suggestions. If you or anyone you know loves a designer but their delivery to Canada is expensive or non-existent, let us know and we will reach out to them."
The Reach storefront is located at 634 Queen St. W., and they're hoping to expand to other major cities across Canada.
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