Scanlan Theodore, Australia’s Best-Kept Luxury Womenswear Secret, Opens Its Only Texas Store in Dallas

Scanlan Theodore is practically a rite of passage for women in Australia, where the contemporary brand was founded in 1987 and is known simply as Scanlan. “In Australia, it’s the preeminent luxury brand,” Scanlan Theodore Americas co-CEO Melinda Robertson tells PaperCity. “When you get your first job at 18 your mom takes you to Scanlan to get a suit.”

But you’d very much be forgiven for not knowing the almost entirely direct-to-consumer Scanlan Theodore in the U.S. — nobody did, until 2017 when the first American store opened on Prince Street in SoHo. The cult-loved Melbourne brand’s U.S. expansion was the result of two Aussie women (the aforementioned Robertson and her friend Sarah Blank) working finance jobs in New York City. After receiving endless compliments and queries on their elegant workwear, they decided to bring Scanlan to the U.S.

They managed to get in contact with elusive founder Gary Theodore, and the Aussie staple officially entered the American market, but thoughtfully so. The plan has long been to open just six U.S. stores in key luxury markets — there are two Scanlan Theodore boutiques in New York, one in Miami’s Bal Harbour Shops, one in Long Island’s Americana Manhasset, an upcoming store in CityCenterDC, and the most recent addition to the elite lineup: a Texas exclusive in Dallas’ NorthPark Center.

Now, Dallas shoppers can get fully acquainted with Scanlan’s effortless ready-to-wear (a mix-and-match dream of flattering high-waisted trousers and tailored tops), mohair cardigans, and the brand’s signature, Italian-milled crepe knit material (a Meghan Markle favorite) in an expansive 3,000-square-foot store mindfully designed by Sydney-based studio Meacham Nockles McQualter (which designs all the stores for Scanlan and another Aussie favorite — Zimmermann).

“In the U.S., there’s a whole lot of high street brands that do what they do really well and there’s a lot of luxury, which is out of reach for most people,” Robertson explains. “But there’s a lot of wide space in the middle. There are a few brands doing what they do beautifully, but there is so much room. So that’s where we slot.”

On Wednesday, November 9, 2022, Scanlan Theodore celebrated the opening of its NorthPark Center store (on level one between Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom) with a chic party. Relive the well-heeled event at our slideshow.