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Street wear, skateboarding have home in Persona

Persona has been a vibrant force in the Downtown Lowell community since its opening in 2011. (Marlon Pitter/Connector)

Marlon Pitter
Connector Editor

Rooted in the cultures of street wear and skateboarding, Persona thrives as a member of the downtown Lowell community.

From the store’s exterior, a bevy of hats, sneakers, t-shirts, skateboard decks and other urban wear can be seen without ever setting foot in the shop. Inside the store, new and longtime customers alike are greeted and welcomed to store a where individuality and self-expression reign supreme.

Nestled on Market Street between Brew’d Awakening Coffeehaus and Savanna Palace nightclub, Persona makes a living off mixing mainstream and underground fashion trends for anyone from street wear gurus to individuals looking for new styles of fashion.

Making the decision to sell streetwear in a more urban environment, Persona owner Jeremy McKenna expanded from Nashua, N.H. and opened a second location the heart of downtown Lowell in 2011. Four years later, the move has certainly paid dividends for himself and his brand.

Coming to Lowell gave McKenna and Persona the opportunity to work with a different clientele compared to Nashua, one that the store’s style aligned more with in his eyes.

“[Lowell] was [somewhere] we knew and felt had the right demographic mixed with a good mix of diversity and culture,” he said.

Rather than moving in and trying to impose his ideals, McKenna said the store has simply blended in and supported the culture in Lowell since its opening. The only thing he wants to change, McKenna said, is business culture.

Persona hats line a shelf in the downtown clothing and skate shop. (Marlon Pitter/Connector)

Persona hats line a shelf in the downtown clothing and skate shop. (Marlon Pitter/Connector)

Most of Persona’s revenue comes from locals, so customer experience is everything, according to McKenna, and that means everything from personal interactions to the products themselves.

“I’d say the only change we really try to make is…keeping it small and organic, where we know our customers by name or by face, they recognize us and try to really develop those relationships,” he said.

Randy Nheb, 19, of Lowell said, aside from the store’s shoe selection, his familiarity with the staff is a reason he returns to the shop. A customer since the store’s opening in 2011, Nheb said, “It’s all people I know, people I went to school with, local people.”

As a store, Persona carries very limited quantities of each item no matter how well it sells. McKenna knows the value of originality to a customer, and in a city of 108,000 residents, he said matching someone else “takes the value out of the product” for him. As items sell out, McKenna instead replaces them with entirely different ones.

“There [aren’t] thousands and hundreds of thousands of people coming through our store that will never see each other,” said McKenna. “It’s a local area; it’s a community.”

Joining the vibrant downtown Lowell area, Persona stays active in the community by doing more than selling clothes and skateboarding apparel. The store often hosts listening parties for local music artists and skateboarding contests for local youth.

“Our main focus with it is to give back to the youth and young kids…,” McKenna said. “A lot of kids are moving into either biking or skateboarding or some type of positive activity, and I think that’s something we try to encourage…”

A local customer looks through long sleeved shirts at Persona. (Marlon Pitter/Connector)

A local customer looks through long sleeved shirts at Persona. (Marlon Pitter/Connector)

Lowell resident Jasper Som credited Persona as being a huge part of youth skateboarding culture in the city. Som said customers in need of parts or equipment can visit the downtown store instead of traveling to more distant retailers.

“This is such a huge bridge because skateboarding is such a huge luxury to which a lot of people in poverty cannot afford,” he said.

Skateboarder and Lowell resident Tommy Bo said he has shopped at Zumiez for skateboarding equipment, but Persona’s proximity in the city keeps him coming back.

“We really need it,” said Bo. “We need more of these stores.”

R.J. Sawtelle, 15, of Lowell said Persona’s overall style and individuality makes it a perfect fit for downtown Lowell.

“I promise you, if you go in this store, you’ll fall in love with it,” he said.

Marlon Pitter is a former editor-in-chief of the UMass Lowell Connector. Hailing from Hartford, Conn., he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English with a concentration in journalism and professional writing and a digital media minor in 2017. Follow him on Twitter @marlonpresents.

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