The Complete Guide to Ponce City Market

Ponce City Market Guide: Where to shop

Yes, PCM is home to plenty of higher-end chains like Madewell and West Elm, but you already know about those. Here are the heritage labels, new-to-market brands, and local launches we’re most excited about—and what you’ll find at their shops. —Mary Logan Bikoff and Betsy Riley

Photograph by Lauren Rubenstein

Karoo
Opened by a team of local eye care pros, Karoo is a full-service optical shop that’s part doctor’s office, part lab, and part handsome boutique. Get a full eye exam with the on-site doctor for $69, then choose from among the dozens of styles (all designed in-house) lining the rustic wood walls. They’ll whip you up a pair of new frames ($149 for single-vision glasses, $249 for prescription sunglasses) in as little as an hour.

Item we love: Giraffe frames, $149

Ponce Denim Company
Spearheaded by local retailer Farshad Arshid, who owns hip men’s shop Standard at Lenox Square, this carefully appointed shop (herringbone floors, tables by Lamon Luther) is Atlanta’s only dedicated denim bar. Find labels for him and her, including Raleigh, Levi’s, and Nudie, plus an on-site tailor for alterations and repairs (and free hemming with purchase).

Item we love: Raleigh Denim Workshop Graham EPM jeans, $370

Goorin Brothers
We tip our hats to San Francisco–based Goorin, outfitting hipsters and grandpas alike with felt fedoras, flatcaps, and straw boaters. The shop is decked out like an 1890s dry goods store (fitting, since the brand dates to 1895) with antique mirrors and sepia photographs—there’s even a feather bar.

Item we love: Zandy’s Bride wool fedora, $78

Photograph by Andrea Fremiotti

The Frye Company
Few shop openings were more anticipated this year than heritage boot maker Frye, originally out of Massachusetts. And when the store opened in August, it didn’t disappoint, with 4,000 square feet of boots, flats, and handbags. (That’s a lot of cowhide.) This month, plenty of new styles are rolling in, from motorcycle and cowboy boots to sneakers.

Item we love: Rabbit-fur-lined Penny Luxe Moto tall boot in Redwood, $598

Rejuvenation
Williams-Sonoma brand Rejuvenation chose Atlanta for its first East Coast brick-and-mortar location. With a strong online presence, the Portland-based retailer is now the nation’s largest manufacturer of period-authentic lighting and house parts. You’ll find yourself coveting doorknobs, lightbulbs, and even extension cords.

Item we love: Type O accent lamp, $139

Archer Paper Goods
Brought to you by the founder of the quirky-hip gift boutique the Merchant, Archer has a campside archery theme and an emphasis on, yes, paper. In addition to go-tos like Rifle Paper Co. and Sugar Paper, it carries stationery by Brit Katie Leamon and a rack of vibrant vintage-style Atlanta postcards. Tchotchkes abound.

Item we love: Sideshow Press pencil pack, notepad folio, tape, and pen, $12–$20 each

Directory

Alex and Ani • Anthropologie • Archer Paper Goods • Binders • CorePower Yoga • J.Crew  • Kit and Ace • Lily Rain • Lou Lou • Lululemon Athletica • Madewell • Michael Stars • Mountain High Outfitters • Onward Reserve • Q Clothier/Rye 51 (Sibling shops with custom suiting and manly duds) • Rejuvenation • West Elm • Williams-Sonoma (The first in the South with a home showroom!)

Maker’s market

An artisan marketplace of both local and national vendors, Citizen Supply, recently set up shop on the second floor. It’s like a permanent pop-up, with makers ranging from local Elk Head Clothing and Honeycomb Studio to California’s Solé bikes.

Field notes

Pump it up
The west wing retail area was home to a Lee Haney bodybuilding gym during the city’s ownership; spot the gym’s red painted columns inside Archer Paper Goods.

Ship center
Nearly every item purchased from the Sears mail order catalog in the Southeast went through what is now the retail courtyard for sorting, packaging, and shipping.

Farm fresh
The North Avenue building served as Sears’s auto repair station (find preserved signage inside Binders). It also hosted a regular farmers market in the 1930s
and 1940s.

Former lives
Onward Reserve was once the building’s electrical room, lined with dozens of panels. Anthropologie’s space formerly housed the conveyor belt that delivered products ready for shipping.

Illustrations by Claire McCracken