Evereve sets grand opening as CEOs show Sioux Falls some early love
Aug. 13, 2019
National women’s retailer Evereve was teasing a big announcement.
In front of its more than 120,000 Facebook followers, founders Mike and Megan Tamte shared the news: Their store was expanding to Sioux Falls.
“There’s not a week that goes by for the past couple years that we haven’t gotten at least two, three, four emails, social media, calls, requests,” Mike Tamte said in the video. “They even called us personally. And we also have thousands of customers who shop with us in our other stores across the country who live in Sioux Falls.”
The store plans to open Sept. 5 in The Empire Mall in a space across from Red Robin with its own exterior entrance.
“We’re thrilled,” he later said by phone. “We’ve been waiting for a number of years to find the right opportunity.”
The 3,300-square-foot store is a little larger than a typical Evereve location. The Tamtes founded the business in Edina, Minn., in 2004 after Megan Tamte had a bad experience as a new mom in a California boutique.
Now, it has grown to almost 90 stores – Sioux Falls will be No. 87 – despite a retail environment that has been challenging for bricks-and-mortar businesses.
“Our product fits a niche, where there’s a gap in the world today,” Mike Tamte said. “We’re midpriced, fashion-forward contemporary. It’s either very expensive or fast fashion, and there’s not a lot of fashion in our price point.”
The average price is $68. Evereve, which Mike Tamte said has been compared to a miniature Nordstrom, is “a house of brands.”
“We carry a lot of other people’s brands,” he said. “We’re not like The Gap where the store is Gap clothing. We carry a lot of brands. The reason we excel in brick and mortar is our customer-service strategy is so different. We get to know customers by name.”
The strategy was apparent even more when the store opened its doors in Sioux Falls. Last week, Megan Tamte visited the city for an open house event that drew dozens of women.
Maddie Peschong Photography
She shared information about the company, introduced her store manager and gave the guests a sense of the experience that awaits when Evereve opens.
“It’s really fun for me to be able to show up in these cities all across America and get into the communities and meet the women who will shop at our store,” she said. “I love the idea of helping them understand our brand and our company and what to expect with our fashion, and I’m interested in getting a sense of the community.”
Maddie Peschong Photography
It was her first trip to Sioux Falls, and she raved about the city.
“It was beautiful. It was very modern,” Megan Tamte said. “We could not be happier to be here. It makes so much sense for us. We’re neighbors, and for years the women of Sioux Falls have been reaching out to us.”
By physically visiting each new market and meeting customers, the stores “become less of a number,” she added. “It’s not just store No. 87. I can connect to that moment, and it feels more human to me.”
It’s also about finding staff. At her open house events, Megan Tamte shares what job opportunities exist at Evereve. The store’s employees are stylists, with the goal of providing a free styling experience to customers.
“It’s very approachable fashion with just the right amount of edge,” she said. “We’re very friendly. We talk to our customers. We will gently dare them out of their comfort zone with fashion, and we will get to know them and understand their body type, their lifestyle and sense of style to guide them to the right clothes.”
