When the team at fragrance company Ranger Station began thinking about a third physical store, it didn’t take long to land on Charleston, South Carolina. The 11-year-old company known for unisex fragrances and candles opened its third retail shop in Charleston in late May, following locations in its hometown of Nashville and on New York City’s Bleecker Street. And while it wasn’t its biggest customer market, co-founders Steve and Jordan Solderholm said the coastal, growing Southern town had the right vibe for a Ranger Station presence.
“Charleston has always been on our list,” Steve Solderholm said. “It’s a really interesting city because you do have the laid-back beach town and Southern feeling, and it is wildly creative. It really is so similar to Nashville in a lot of ways.”
Then, when the Solderholms had the chance to gut and renovate an 800-square-foot former vape shop on the downtown retail stretch of King Street, they jumped on the opportunity.
“We want to be in places where customers are already going to be walking around and discovering us because we’re still just a growing brand,” said Jordan Solderholm. “And so the opportunity to be on King Street was huge for us.”
King Street is a historic mile-long hub in Charleston that’s a popular, walkable retail destination for tourists. Some of Ranger Station’s neighbors include Urban Outfitters, Jenni Kane, Brandy Melville and Pottery Barn, plus independent and locally owned boutiques.
