The French Door is a European-inspired home and garden shop that has a variety of unique treasures sprinkled throughout its downtown Vancouver location. Kathryn McIntire, the shop proprietress and owner, discovered the 1,400-square-foot garage in one of the historic hidden buildings and transformed it into The French Door. McIntire, who has more than 35 years of retail experience, officially opened the shop in June of 2015.
All items are carefully curated by a select group of collaborators. Shoppers will find a wide selection of vintage furniture, fine art, home and garden décor, and much more. The group consists of four resident multi-media artists that sell jewelry, watercolor prints, clothing and other décor pieces. The shop also just started carrying Eryngium Papeterie, which includes a large selection of cards, stationery and journals, nestled among French inks and other antique desk accessories.
Prior to the pandemic, the shop was establishing a strong base of loyal customers. But when retail shops were forced to temporarily close, McIntire had to get creative with her marketing.
“We set up an Etsy account and had ‘by-appointment shopping’ and curbside pickup,” she said. “When we were allowed to open in June 2020, customers poured in, and the year showed a small decrease over 2019. The shop has come back strong in 2021, showing a 36% increase year to date.”
Looking ahead, McIntire is hopeful about the future of The French Door. She and her team will continue to focus on bringing one-of-a-kind pieces for people to beautify their home or workspaces.
“The French Door is looking forward to a successful future as Vancouver is growing,” McIntire said. “We see many new customers daily who comment on how excited they are to find us and how unique and beautiful the shop is. We’re passionate about what we do – it gives us pleasure to have a gem in downtown Vancouver.”
The French Door is located at 109 W. Mill Plain Blvd., in Vancouver.
