Friday 29 March 2024

LAZULI: NEW DESIGNER CLOTHING BOUTIQUE IN GOZO

A new designer clothing and accessories boutique called “Lazuli” has just opened in Gozo offering individual style and quality for men and women.  Lazuli (named after the semi-precious stone Lapis Lazuli, and also meaning azure) is located in a refurbished 350 year old building at 1, St. George Square, Victoria.  Summer opening hours are: Mon-Fri 10-6 & Saturday 10-4.

The brainchild of French-born owner/director Charlotte Lombard, who opened the sister shop Organika directly opposite 7 years ago, Lazuli is already providing the fresh look of this summer to its customers.  Charlotte said:

“I am delighted to share my vision for a new experience in shopping on Gozo.  We opened the door in March and look forward to welcoming our customers to a special launch on Saturday 26 April at 10am when we will offer ‘one day only’ special offers and a Spanish-themed party on the Square with Flamenco dancing by Algeria Dance Company. Under the direction of Ingrid Scibberas, Alegria is Malta’s premier Flamenco Dance Company.”

Lazuli offers a regularly changing range of stylish, colourful, high quality, exclusive and ethically traded clothing and accessories in limited quantities.   Stock is specially selected from the new seasonal collections of French designer La Fiancee du Mekong – beautiful vibrant cotton dresses, skirts and shirts we know our customers will love.   You can find Spanish hand-made shoes and espadrilles; Malta designed and printed t-shirts for both men and women; colourful handbags, stylish man bags and an affordable range of well designed contemporary interior lighting from France in bright and neutral shades.

Charlotte explained the concept behind Lazuli:

“My family and I have now lived on Gozo for 8 years and it has taken this time to fully understand what was missing from the shopping scene here and what customers would respond to – the local and international community of the island; visiting Maltese and tourists from overseas.   After building up a loyal clientele over the years with Organika and listening to what our customers wanted:  fair trade unusual and original gifts from around the world; ethically traded clothing and accessories which are different, comfortable and hard-wearing;  I realized it was time to expand the business and launch Lazuli. I am passionate about fair trade retailing and recognize that more and more customers   want to know where their clothing has come from, who made it and under what conditions.

I was very lucky when an old shop became available right opposite my existing shop Organika.  It has taken a lot of work with a dedicated team of local tradesmen because the interior was very old fashioned and dark.  We recycled pallet wood to create display racks and refurbished what was already there to create a bright, colourful, modern retail space.

I wanted to launch Lazuli as a “Summer” shop open from March- November,  concentrating more on the clothing and accessory collections which I couldn’t expand in Organika due to limited space,  yet run both shops in harmony with each other.   The Lazuli customer is more interested in style and quality rather than fashion trends.  They want something different from the high-street brands:  vibrant colours which don’t fade in the wash;   flattering, individual styles and comfortable to wear.  Our customers want to shop in a relaxed atmosphere and be welcomed by dedicated, friendly staff who not only knows about the things they are selling but are passionate about them too.

The name Lazuli, the look of the shop interior, and logo (designed in Malta by Panda Design) were developed from the idea of summer living on Gozo:  the azure blue of the Mediterranean sea, sunshine, days at the beach and the bright yellow of flowering fennel.”

 

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