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Saint Bernard brings chic sports and lifestyle verve to Southlake

If you're in the market for colorful hats, they have some.

Photo courtesy of Saint Bernard

Dallas-based outdoor and lifestyle retailer Saint Bernard is expanding its DFW reach by opening a new location: in the Shops of Southlake.

It'll take over a former Pier 1 Imports store, at 1275 E Southlake Blvd., #401; according to a release, it'll open Friday, June 4.

Brands featured in the Southlake store will include Mother, Frame, Loveshack Fancy, ALC, Peter Millar, Mizzen+Main, Faherty, Greyson Clothiers, and more.

COO Charlie Goyer says in a statement that Southlake represents the next step in the company's continued growth.

"Southlake has such a strong community, and we are honored to bring our unique services to the area," Goyer says. "With fashion and lifestyle brands, as well as travel necessities, and lounge areas for a laid back atmosphere, we are looking to be the one-stop-shop in Southlake where people can gather and enjoy a relaxing shopping experience."

This will be their fourth store. It will offer women's and men’s contemporary clothing; a full-service ski shop; and a children's lounge area, for parents who want to shop kid-free.

A men's lounge will come with a bar featuring an espresso machine, draft beer, and wine on tap.

"Saint Bernard is where you go before you go, and as travel starts to pick back up, we want to be the destination for all your needs," Goyer says.

Saint Bernard was founded in 1978 as St. Bernard Sports, a full service ski shop as good as those found in the world's best ski resorts. Founders Anne and Wes Goyer created a store that not only offered world class ski gear, but that also encompassed their family’s passion for personal style and the outdoors.

After years of moves and expansions, their son Charlie Goyer joined the family legacy and expanded the brand into a successful e-commerce platform and a refreshed retail space.

In 2016, they rebranded the namesake to simply Saint Bernard, and broadened their offerings with more lifestyle and contemporary brands for both men and women. They've also opened stores in Houston and Austin, which happen to be two cities where CultureMap also has outlets, so obviously they know what's up.

Charlie got his liberal arts at the University of Texas at Austin, then did postgraduate work in Aspen. He first took on the Saint Bernard e-commerce site, growing the new division of the company to 25 percent of the business within the first few years of development. He spearheads the growth of the company — from new storefronts and brand partners to company culture.

"What started in Dallas over 40 years ago will now be available to another great Texas community, while maintaining the same core values we started with as a family business," he says.

sports openings

MOVING ON UP

Texas rises through the ranks of most innovative states, says new report

Photo via Getty Images

Texas has seen year-over-year improvement on an annual list that ranks states based on their innovation economies.

The Lone Star State has again taken a step up on an annual report that ranks the most and least innovative states in the country — this time cracking the top 15.

Texas ranked No. 15 in personal finance site WalletHub's 2023’s Most and Least Innovative States ranking. It's a steady improvement for the state, which ranked No. 16 in 2022 and No. 17 in 2021.

The report analyzed the 50 states and the District of Columbia and how each performed across 22 key metrics, including population of STEM professionals, venture capital investment activity, number of technology companies, patents per capita, and more. The data was pulled from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Science Foundation, National Center for Education Statistics, United States Patent and Trademark Office, and other records.

Here's how Texas performed at a glance:

No. 18 – for share of STEM professionals
No. 16 – for projected STEM job demand by 2030
No. 25 – for eighth grade math and science performance
No. 21 – for share of science and engineering graduates aged 25 or older
No. 13 – for share of technology companies
No. 31 – for R&D spending per capita
No. 18 – venture capital funding per capita

For the 11th year, Texas won Site Selection Magazine's Governor's Cup, the governor's office announced earlier this year. The award, which Texas has won 19 times since its inception in 1978, recognizes the nation’s top-performing state for job-creating business relocations and expansions.

"Texas truly is America’s economic engine, and we stand apart as a model for the nation. When choosing where to relocate or expand their businesses, more and more innovative industry leaders find themselves at home in our state," Governor Greg Abbott says in a news release about the award.

"I congratulate the exceptional economic development teams at the local, regional, and state level who have worked so diligently to attract and retain these growing businesses and the jobs they create in diverse communities across this great state," he continues.

The most innovative states included the District of Columbia, which ranked at No. 1, followed by Massachusetts, Washington, Maryland, and California, respectively. The least innovative state was identified as Mississippi, followed by Louisiana, North Dakota, West Virginia, and Arkansas, respectively.

Source: WalletHub

Access to quality education is a significant contributor to each state's innovation economy, the experts say in the report.

"Investing in education, particularly K-12 but also at the University level, it is no accident that innovative ecosystems develop in states with strong education systems and research universities," says David L. Deeds, professor at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. "These institutions build strong capable modern workforces that attract capital, and jobs and create innovations. The benefits do not happen overnight, in fact, they take years if not decades, but consider what The UC’s or the University of Texas at Austin have meant for the development of premier innovative ecosystems."

Texas WalletHub innovation