Oakland’s Inclusive Luxury Fashion Retailer McMullen Is 15 Years Strong and Expanding

The McMullen e-commerce site has a section highlighting “Our Black Partners.”

A native of Oklahoma, McMullen was a buyer at Neiman Marcus before moving to the Bay Area to work as a textile buyer at Pottery Barn Kids. She fell in love with the community in Oakland, which was then full of thriving small businesses. “I was writing a business plan while I was still working, and I found an 800-square-foot space on Piedmont Avenue that was still under development, had no flooring, no plumbing.

Between 2019 and 2021, total company sales increased 31 percent, with a 23 percent increase in store and a 601 percent increase online, explained McMullen, who has been acquiring customers via social media, rewards programs, and by sending out “goodie boxes” of styles to shop from home. “Our plan is to grow e-commerce tremendously over the next 10 years,” she said, adding that after relying on friends and family for funding, she is now actively seeking outside financing.

“I’m always looking for things that move me. When I talk to designers, and hear their story and inspiration for a collection or their overall brand, that’s what excites me. It could be how they are supporting other people and communities they are living in, or how they are doing hand beading and dyeing and using traditional techniques.

“Sherri has always had a point of view and has never made an attempt to be everything to everyone. She has such a strong sense of personal style and her best asset is being quite forthright with her opinions and bringing them to her customers,” said Smilovic. “If Sherri bought it, it’s because she believes in it. For her and for her customer.

From New York, she’s helped to nurture mechanical engineer-turned-knitwear designer Aisling Camps. “During lockdown, we were Zooming and she was trying pieces on in her apartment. I told her to ‘ship me everything, I can’t believe no stores have picked up your work!’ We started talking about margins and pricing structures and making what she’s doing less of a hobby and more of a business.”’ collection back in 2017.

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