Nearly four months after it was learned that Brandon was to be home to its very own Once Upon a Child location, the kids merchandise retailer has dotted the final i’s and crossed the final t’s in preparation for the highly anticipated opening of its 18th Street store.
While an in-store Grand Opening originally scheduled for this week will have to wait in lieu of Manitoba’s new “Code Red” reality, the retailer has softly opened this week by giving customers the opportunity a chance to book “virtual shopping” access. After choosing from available time slots, customers are given the opportunity to connect to a store representative by video chat where they will be among the first to access the more than 57,000 items in stock. Bookings can be made via the store’s social media, email or phone.
I had the chance for a sneak peak inside earlier this week as staff put finishing touches on the 3500 sqft space, which after a several week period of acquiring everything from kids clothes, toys, furniture and equipment is now fully stocked, priced and ready for shoppers.
You can have a peek yourself using the 360 degree panorama image below, shot of the store as it stood this week. Click and drag within the image to have a look around, using the zoom in/out buttons to look a little closer. Click on the black circular “hot spots” within the image to jump to a different point within the store.
Click/tap and drag within the image to have a look around. Click on the black circular hot spots to jump to another perspective within the store.
In addition to taking Virtual Shopping bookings, Once Upon a Child is hosting Facebook Live streams at varying times throughout the day where a store representative will showcase different aspects of available merchandise.
Representatives of the store will continue to monitor the state of COVID-19 and regional restrictions in place, announcing a revised opening date when deemed safe to do so.