Aug. 27, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by Pendar Properties.

Combine, a women’s, men’s and homeware retailer that started in the Twin Cities, has opened its new Sioux Falls store.

The downtown location is a partnership between Anne and Dustin Haber and Combine founder Mike Pickart, who first opened in 2018 in the Uptown area of Minneapolis.

The Sioux Falls store is on the first floor of The Bancorp Building at 345 N. Reid Place.

“It’s unbelievable,” Pickart said. “The team here really knocked it out of the park.”

Pickart, who went to Axtell Park Middle School before his family moved to Lennox and he graduated from high school there, grew up shopping with his father at Norman’s Men’s Wear in Sioux Falls. He gained a love for fashion there that led him to a career in retail. He and business partner Karen Heithoff owned and operated the store Intoto in Minneapolis from 1990 to 2010.

The concept for Combine is that it combines luxury apparel and home items for a broader lifestyle approach to shopping.

“Most of our collections come from Europe and Asia — we have two Japanese collections we love — and some California designers, but really we have more of an international kind of vibe,” Pickart said.

“And it’s all slow fashion. All the collections in Minneapolis are here, plus some additional designers we can’t carry there because of conflicts with other stores, which shows how unique this store is going to be for Sioux Falls.”

Pickart was approached by the Habers, who were shoppers at the Minneapolis store, about opening in Sioux Falls. While he hadn’t considered a second location, it became a quick “yes,” he said.

“I know the family, I know the taste level, and it made it easy,” Pickart said.

“I can honestly say if she had not come to me, there’s no way I would have opened another store ever. Only with her.”

For Haber, the store represents a chance to create a place that “feels like home,” she said.

“It’s cozy and feels like a place I’d want to hang out. Retail has been a dream of ours for a long time, and we’ve known Mike a long time, and so we asked him to partner, and the only place we could think about this store being is at Cherapa because this place is special. And it’s hopefully going to be a catalyst for other retailers.”

The store deliberately orders only one size in each piece, she added.

“So we’re very careful, and we don’t have a lot, which is great because you won’t be walking around town looking like someone else,” she said. “Our friends and neighbors downtown already are showing an interest. They walk over, they’re curious, and we’ve let people privately shop, and they’ve really enjoyed that. We can arrange a private shopping experience for you individually or as a group.”

Combine in Sioux Falls is managed by Haber and Pickart and staffed by Kate Christopulos and Colleen Anderson, who is Pickart’s sister.

Along with men’s and women’s apparel, shoppers will find a curated selection of handbags, scarves, socks, jewelry, candles, soaps and skin care in addition to home decor.

“We even have dog collars,” Haber added. “It’s a wonderful place to shop for yourself, but it’s also an ideal location to find unique gifts for others.”

There’s “an incredible collection of rugs” from Saffron & Spruce, restored by Sioux Falls native Liz Kennedy, who sources them worldwide.

“She sources them, cleans them up and sells them and began doing this as a passion,” Pickart said. “She then returned to practice law, but we remain her big retail outlet in Sioux Falls and Minneapolis.”

Cym Warkov Ceramics is a “very exclusive line” from an artist “who’s very well known in the ceramics world,” Haber said. “We carry pottery and lamps, and they’re beautiful.”

Haber also has sourced skin care products from a farm in Jamaica and even connected with Sioux Falls-area makers at the recent 605 Made Night Market.

“We’re bringing some of their work into the store,” Haber said. “And we have boxes arriving practically daily, so there’s always going to be something new to see. We’re going to expand on what sells. We’ll go to markets and really learn our customer.”

Expect ongoing special events in the store such as whiskey and wine tastings, she added.

“We’re excited to work with our neighbors, iv&co, on events, and that’s the vision for the broader Cherapa development, with SISU Fit, Pomegranate Market and hopefully our future retailers. With Combine, you can go in a store where you feel comfortable and find high-quality clothing that fits well and makes you feel good and is sustainable. This is broader than even wellness. It’s about a creating a place that enriches your overall quality of life.”

Hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday through Monday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and by appointment on Tuesday.