A new menswear boutique is set to open in Stirling city centre later this month.
Calpa Menswear will launch on March 29 at 10am, offering freebies, discounts and exclusives to its first customers.
Carl Lamming is opening the new store in the former Skills Development Scotland unit on Upper Craigs.
The shop will stock big UK brands, including Weekend Offender, Luke 1977 and Pretty Green.
Seam Junkies, an independent company based in North Lanarkshire, will be taking orders for handmade smocks and tops from Calpa Menswear customers.
Calpa is ‘more than a shop’
Carl believes Stirling has a “bum deal” when it comes to menswear shops.
He hopes to create the city’s first independent store with personalised service.
“It’s more of a space than a shop,” the 46-year-old told The Courier.
“It’s designed really for the guys to come in and connect, talk about football, whatever they want to talk about.
“It’s a space for guys to be able to be relaxed and just be themselves.”
Calpa Menswear will offer complimentary drinks from its coffee bar.
Carl said: “I want that to be the focus, so you don’t feel like you’ve got to go to the racks and start looking through.
“I want people to feel like it’s as much their boutique, their shop, as it is mine.”
The store is called Calpa to pay tribute to Stirling’s history, as it means “capital” in Gaelic.
It also honours the first shop Carl managed: Capital Collection in Grimsby.
Carl started working in boutiques aged 16 and ran his own store before moving to work for other businesses.
He said: “I grew up in a boutique environment. I absolutely loved it. I always wanted to do my own thing with it.
“I have gone away to cut my teeth in some really big businesses – health and leadership positions – that have allowed me to broaden my understanding of what great looks like, and now I’m going to do it for myself.”
‘Kaleidoscope of emotions’ on run-up to launch
Carl, who moved to Falkirk 12 years ago, has selected each item that will be on sale in his shop.
He said: “I’ve personally chosen every single piece.
“I’ve stood there, touched it, felt it, looked at every colour, looked at every size.
“It’s a very curated collection that I’ve put together, and I think it’s exactly what the city needs.
“But, in saying that, I will let the lads guide me, not the other way around.
“If they’re telling me more of this, less of that, I will go with the masses. We’re in this together.”
The boutique owner described opening the shop as a “kaleidoscope of emotions”.
“I’m apprehensive but I think it’s going to go great, and I hope it’s what people will really want and love,” said the business owner.
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