Pagoda Lane owners try The Quarter on for size

Three and a half years ago, Heather and Chip Hassan had an idea to bring small gift shops to the North Valley by opening the first location of Pagoda Lane in Paradise Valley. 

The brand now has a presence at a second location along the Greenway-Hayden loop and is testing the mall scene this holiday season with a pop-up shop at Scottsdale Quarter that will remain open through February. 

“We’re testing the waters to understand how our brand fits into a mall environment and with we’re hoping that we’re going to be able to find a permanent location once we’ve proven to ourselves that we can handle it and proven to mall owners also that we’re a valuable asset in their portfolio,” Chip said. 

The couple figured that Scottsdale Quarter would be a good place to start at an intimate shop nestled between Lens Crafters and Kittenish.

“We’re looking to expand the business and when this opportunity came along, we jumped at it because we thought it would be a great way to test the market,” Heather said, who also sees an opportunity to diversify Pagoda Lane’s clientele. 

“It’s different customers from what our customers are right now,” Heather said. “I just think with the location of where we are, there are many untapped customers in this area.” 

Chip was also drawn to Scottsdale Quarter because the shopping center is attractive to tourists and says that at least half of the customers who have perused their store have been tourists. 

Local shoppers have also been astounded by an exclusive offering at Pagoda Lane: monogramming. 

Monogramming is defined as a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol, but Hassan sees it as the ultimate way to personalize a gift. 

“It’s a way to personalize gifts and clothing and we can either do initials on items, or we can write out names, sentences, logos, or things like that,” Heather said. “It’s just a nice way to personalize gifts or items in your home.” 

Because of that, Pagoda Lane began adding monogramming to its shop last year. 

Heather’s love of personalization goes back much further. 

“I’ve always loved monogramming since I was a child, but  I just felt like there wasn’t anywhere here in Scottsdale or Paradise Valley that did anything like that where you could walk into a shop, find the item that you wanted, pick out your monogram and pick out your color on the spot,” She said. 

Because of this, Hassan’s invested in a state-of-the-art monogramming machine from Japan that can check 1,000 stitches a minute, creating custom designs in minutes. 

As it currently stands, customers have over 100 color threads and 60 designs to choose from in-store, and many items to personalize. 

“We can monogram anything that’s fabric or leather-like totes, sleepwear, robes, children’s items, aprons, throw blankets, and things like that,” Heather said. 

So far, customers have been ecstatic about receiving a personalized gift created at Pagoda Lane. 

“Our customers are over the moon about it,” Heather said. “The fact that somebody you know came into our store and took the time to pick out a gift pick out the thread colors, pick out the font and have it personalized for them just takes it up to another level.” 

However, monogrammed gifts are not the only items patrons can purchase at Pagoda Lane. 

The shop sells novelty items like holiday cards, cups, and pillows with amusing sayings, graphic tees, stuffed animals, and branded trucker hats. 

Though the shop has been open for a few weeks, a grand opening reception is set to take place on Wednesday, November 30 and the shop will donate 20% of its sales during the event to the Arizona Humane Society.

If You Go:

Pagoda Lane grand opening

When: 4 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30

Where:15037 N. Scottsdale Road J-170

Info: Pagodalane.com. 20% of sales during the event will be donated to the Arizona Humane Society.