WICKER PARK — Clothing retailer Marine Layer is set to join the ranks of San Francisco-based clothing stores popping up all over Damen Avenue.
The store, which specializes in "perfectly soft" T-shirts made with a focus on sustainability, is aiming to open in June inside the former The Goddess and Grocer location at 1646 N. Damen Ave., Marine Layer spokesman Nish Nadaraja said in an email.
Goddess and Grocer moved across the street to 1649 N. Damen Ave. at the end of April.
The Wicker Park shop is part of Marine Layer's first expansion outside of the West Coast. It currently has California locations in San Francisco, Palo Alto, Venice Beach as well as a shop in Portland, Ore.
The retailer also has plans to open a Lincoln Park store at 849 W. Armitage Ave. by the end of the year.
Online, the company's T-shirts tend to start at $39. "We think it’s better to pay a little more for a shirt that you really like," the Marine Layer's website states.
Hiring recently started for the Damen Avenue location, Nadaraja said. Craigslist job postings from the company include store supervisor, store manager/community outreach manager and sales associate positions.
There's still much to be done to transform the former food store into a clothing shop, but Nadaraja said, "we work fast."
In what appears to be a mini San Francisco takeover of Damen Avenue, Marine Layer would arrive after the May 1 opening of the Bay Area-based kids' clothing store Peek at 1723 N. Damen Ave. as well as messenger bag shop Timbuk2, which plans to open at 1623 N. Damen Ave. on Saturday.
Marine Layer, started by Mike Natenshon in 2009, sells shirts made from a custom fabric blend along with a variety of men's and women's casual clothing.
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