4 mins read | Behind The Scenes

Behind the scenes: Pala Stockist The Cove Collection

co-founders of Cove Collective

When it comes to getting the word out about our sunglasses, we are proud to be stocked in many stores across the world.  We make it an absolute priority to work with stores that have an affinity with our brand values here at Pala. They are our partners, our extended family and we appreciate everything they do to help introduce Pala to new customers.

This weeks interview takes a behind the scenes look at one of our Hawaii stockist: The Cove Collection.  A store created by a group of very creative women in 2018 who set upon curating a special boutique of hand crafted jewellery, apothecary, art, and home goods. Their products can be bought online and in store; located in the heart of the North Shore of Oahu at Shark’s Cove, Hawaii. We recently had the pleasure of interviewing Jenn Johnson, one of the Co-Founders.

Please can you tell the story behind how Cove Collection started?

There are four of us ladies—a couple of us born and raised here and two having been here for many decades.  We were all doing our own thing in business as well as being moms.  We’d all known each other for ages and had always been close friends.  In 2018 we had an opportunity to do a pop up shop together, each of us with our own mostly handmade products.  By the end of the day, we’d all done well and had a lot of laughs and great conversations with our community— everything seemed to flow.  We thought, what if we could do this all the time?  And that’s how the idea for the Cove Collection was born. Our little old plantation-house-turned-boutique started months later.

The Cove Collection shop Hawaii

What do you look for in a product or brand to stock in store?

If it’s made in Hawaii, or even more locally, created ethically and without traditional plastic – that’s what we love.  We thrive on promoting mission brands like Pala Sunglasses, where there is a real story to tell about the integrity and the heart behind the brand.  The customer response is usually something like, “wow!”. We’re seeing more people making a real transition from supporting ’the man’ to putting their money toward companies doing good things for the world.

Please tell us about your local neighbourhood?

We live in a small town where everyone pretty much knows everyone.  When you go to the grocery store or the post office, there’s always people you know.  We know the names of our postmen and grocery check-out girls.  It’s a very tight, family and surf-oriented community.  Everything seems to revolve around the ocean and the beach.  We couldn’t imagine living anywhere else!

What is the highlight of our journey with the Cove?

Probably our one-year party with all of our close friends and supporters, who are many.  Everyone who had helped us get going and have a great first year!  We were able to toast them with champagne and a lot of good food and music on the front lawn of our location.

How have the last few months been during the COVID pandemic?

We’ve seen both good and bad come from the pandemic.  We had previously relied heavily on tourism to keep us busy and successful, so when we were permitted to re-open it was a little scary to see how we’d fare.  The local people have all come out in droves to support small businesses and we’ve been overwhelmed with gratitude for our community and the love they’ve shown us.

What are your plans for the future?

We may have a new location coming in the future—a bigger one in the same area.  One that space isn’t limited and we can expand our collections and our imaginations. Keep up to date with The Cove Collection via instagram, in-store and online.

Supporting our extended family means thanking those who make it possible for you to see our shades, all over the world. Find your nearest stockist, or more behind the scenes chat with our network of stores, check out more stories below.

Photos copyright The Cove Collection 2020.