FEATURING YELLOW JACKET BOUTIQUE Words By Alice Swan | Photography Courtesy of Yellow Jacket Look what’s ‘popped up’ on the Alexandria retail scene, just in time for the holidays! Successful retailer Elizabeth Todd has expanded her Hive brand into menswear, with a new store at 301 Cameron Street in Old Town Alexandria, aptly named Yellow Jacket.

The move was inspired by customer requests she’d been hearing for years and her own experience shopping for the men in her life, Todd admitted.

“Shopping for my son or my husband, it was so hard to find them quality jeans, or a sweater or a button-down, and hearing the same from customers there seemed to be a market for a men’s store,” Todd said. “When I had the opportunity to expand The Hive into a larger space, I thought 301 Cameron was the perfect place to try a men’s store.”

Todd explained that the trend for more relaxed dressing was the buying guide for the store, which is filled with casual yet stylish clothing and accessories for men. Among the brands to be found at Yellow Jacket are AG Denim, Tasc, Johnnie-O, and other popular lines. “We want to have clothes for people’s lives, and I think men, just like women, want to look put together and good when they get dressed. That is what the store is aiming for,” she added.

Yellow Jacket is also making holiday shopping easier for the special guy in your life by offering the Yellow Jacket Box service. After completing a short questionnaire in the shop or online, and providing a suggested dollar amount, the store team will create a curated gift box for you, to be either shipped or delivered locally. Customers can even sign up to receive more boxes through the year, with the option to keep or return the items.

Through December, Yellow Jacket will be open Mondays through Saturdays from 10am-6pm and Sundays from noon to 5pm. You can also shop online at https://theshoehive.com.

While Todd opened Yellow Jacket quickly as a pop-up for the holiday season, she has big plans for the store in 2022. Yellow Jacket will be closed briefly in January for renovations, she explained, to make room for all the new men’s clothing items she will be bringing in for Spring and Summer. An official Grand Opening event is also being planned for Winter 2022.