CAZENOVIA — This past summer, Otis + Matilda New York — a specialty women’s and men’s footwear, accessories, and home brand — opened its first brick-and-mortar location on Cazenovia’s main street.
The new boutique is located at 65 Albany St. in the space that was occupied by P.E. Mulligan’s for the last 126 years.
“The Otis + Matilda target customers are professionals who have an elevated taste level for both casual and dress wear,” said Derek Clark, who co-owns the business with his partner, Jason Johnson. “Our customer has an appreciation for branded footwear and accessories, and they enjoy shopping in an upscale environment and feeling good about their experience.”
Clark added that he envisions Otis + Matilda evolving into a lifestyle brand that encompasses women’s footwear, accessories, and ready-to-wear alongside men’s footwear, accessories, and casual wear.
Clark has over 30 years of experience building and branding wholesale and retail companies. He held senior executive positions with Macy’s West & Federated Department Stores in San Francisco and with designers Steve Madden and Perry Ellis in New York City. He also served as senior vice president of wholesale & retail financial planning, merchandise planning & production planning for the global fashion brand Elie Tahari in New York City.
“My experience within the wholesale and retail sector coupled with Jason’s experience within retail and corporate accounting made creating a brand that parallels both our careers a natural progression,” said Clark.
When deciding on a name for their shared brand, Clark and Johnson were initially set on either Otis or Otis NY.
However, as the brand concept evolved and future product categories were considered, the pair decided to expand the name.
At the recommendation of Johnson’s sister Ana, the co-owners added Matilda to the name.
“We decided to expand the name to Otis + Matilda to allow us the flexibility to easily and quickly expand the brand’s footprint, whether it’s women’s, men’s, or home,” explained Clark. “. . . Adding Matilda worked nicely for us and the vision we have for the brand’s future growth.”
Clark and Johnson scouted several locations for their first store and ultimately fell in love with Cazenovia and the historic building at 65 Albany St.
“The old Mulligan’s space checked every box within our vision,” said Clark. “It has 152 years of history and beautiful interior details. The bones of the building are special. The beauty of the building allowed us to achieve our goal [of creating] a brand that is representative of great product, great pricing, and [a space] that’s elegant, visually appealing, and inviting to everyone. We want every customer to feel special when they visit Otis + Matilda. Whether they purchase on their first visit or in the future, we want to make sure they know we appreciate them, their business, and their time spent in the store.”
Otis + Matilda officially opened in August and launched its e-commerce website, otisandmatilda.com, in September.
Clark expressed that being part of the downtown business community has been a wonderful experience so far, due in large part to a welcoming customer base.
“Our business has grown incrementally week over week for the past 13 weeks with high conversion rates, a growing e-commerce platform, and consistent repeat customer growth,” he explained. “We’ve remained laser-focused to our business plan and have successfully maneuvered our model through the current supply chain challenges as well as the long lead times within the footwear industry. It’s important to never forget, retail is details.”
Clark also remarked on his positive experiences working with and learning from some of the “real merchants” within the local retail community.
“Anyone can open or operate a store, but a merchant succeeds at it,” he said. “For example, Cazenovia Abroad has succeeded in Cazenovia for fifty-plus years. That’s an accomplishment few retailers will ever get to experience. We look forward to being a part of Cazenovia’s growing retail footprint, supporting our neighboring businesses, and giving back to the community that has supported us and future causes. I hope Cazenovia is proud of their downtown village. It is very special. Think big, support small.”
Otis + Matilda New York is currently planning a special evening for the annual Cazenovia Christmas Walk/Tree Lighting on Friday, Dec. 2. Further details will follow.
The boutique is open Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information or to shop online, visit otisandmatilda.com.
