By Sophia Markoulakis June 14, 2018 Updated: July 4, 2018 3:11 p.m.
In a matter of weeks, the Podolls will be no more. After 15 years of success developing, launching and running their eponymous fashion brand and retail boutiques, the husband-and-wife design team is closing down their business to spend some much-needed time with their two young children and launch separate creative endeavors.
Because the two built and ran the business from its inception, it was always a personal endeavor, whether it was the clothes they created, the messaging they chose to align with, or the intimacy and aesthetic of the retail spaces. "It was an extension of our home and life," she says.
Revisiting their journey is akin to reading a personal road map of their lives together.
The couple met in 2003 when Lauren, a buyer at AB Fits, was interested in T-shirts that Josh was designing. They married in 2005 and pursued Josh's T-shirt designs until 2009, when they rebranded the company and expanded their line to include effortlessly hip and comfortable separates made from globally sourced natural fabric and hand-dyed silks, all manufactured locally.
Like many other creatives searching for affordable studio space, the couple first worked out of Lauren's mother's garage. A stint in a studio in Dogpatch was great for fulfilling orders from high-profile clients like Barneys New York and Anthropologie. In 2013, they opened their Burlingame shop and transferred their design studio to a small workspace in the back of the store. With the addition of the Noe Valley location in 2015, they were able to work there as well.
Setting up shop in Burlingame felt natural for them since Lauren's roots are nearby and the couple wanted to acquaint themselves with a family-friendly vibe. Their son, Dashiell, now 6½, became the inspiration for their children's clothing line, the Podots, which they launched at the Burlingame location. Banking on Noe Valley's similar family-friendly feel, the children's line continued to be an attraction at the second location even after the Burlingame location closed last year.
Retail vacancies on their block affected the Podolls' bottom line, according to Lauren. She says the empty storefronts were factors out of their control. In the last few months, several clothing boutiques on 24th Street have closed including the Mill, Rabat, See Jane Run and Isso.
The Podolls: 3985 24th St. http://shopthepodolls.com. The current collection, archival collections and store fixtures are on sale through June 30.
Both Lauren and Josh are optimistic about their future creative pursuits. Josh's new custom furniture business, Chopwoodco, is already keeping him busy, and he is booked several months out. Lauren isn't ready to divulge what her next move will be, but it will most likely be in the home-design realm. Right now their focus is greeting as many customers as they can and savoring the connection they built with so many.
Sophia Markoulakis is a San Francisco freelance writer. Email: style@sfchronicle.com.