Neighbourhood Goods

The Chelsea store (opened in late 2019) offered a 4,500-square-foot space featuring an ever-changing curation of emerging and digitally native brands across categories like apparel, beauty, home, and wellness. Each brand was showcased in a modular, boutique-style area with storytelling elements, aiming to bring online brands into a high-footfall physical environment. The store included communal spaces and programming such as events, pop-ups, and partnerships designed to build community and drive engagement.

Neighbourhood Goods’ retail model revolved around short-term leases for brands and a mix of monthly fees or revenue sharing, rather than traditional wholesale. They provided staffing and centralized checkout, while brands benefitted from flexible exposure, real-time sales metrics, and access to data on in-store shoppers. The aim was to lower barriers for DTC and emerging brands to access physical retail and maintain freshness for local consumers.
The closure of the Chelsea store—and the wider Neighborhood Goods business in early 2024—stemmed from mounting financial pressures, difficulties collecting payments from some partner brands, and broader economic headwinds that affected similar retail concepts. Like sector peer Showfields, Neighborhood Goods struggled with the economics of the retail-as-a-service model, including high urban rents and the need for ongoing newness and operational agility. By early 2024, the company announced the shutdown of all locations, citing challenges from landlords, investors, and changing consumer footfall post-pandemic.