NEW HOME UNVEILED
TOGA Heritage cuts ribbon for its Broadway storefront
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » Spa City-based lifestyle company TOGA Heritage has a new home with a Broadway storefront for downtown shoppers to enjoy.
After years of renting space from other businesses, TOGA Heritage recently moved to a spacious street-level unit of its own that spans 322 through 328 Broadway.
This building, on the corner of Spring Street and adjacent to Congress Park in Saratoga Springs, is the former Congress Theatre and Congress Hall building. The building has also been home to several purveyors of fine goods, a grocery store and a pharmacy in its lifetime, dating back to 1884.
Toga Heritage celebrated the relocation on Thursday afternoon at a ribbon cutting ceremony held in association with the Saratoga County
Chamber of Commerce.
“Our customers are our family, and I always knew I wanted to have a shop that would serve as a welcoming spot for locals or locals at heart,” TOGA Heritage founder Deborah DePasquale said in a press release.
Established in 2017, The company’s philosophy centers on celebrating tradition and community, offering thoughtfully curated fine goods reflective of all things Saratoga.
"Our customers are our family, and I always knew I wanted to have a shop that would serve as a welcoming spot for locals or locals at heart." — TOGA Heritage founder Deborah DePasquale
“TOGA Heritage products are popular sightings around Saratoga Springs and the greater region, and the classic logo baseball cap is frequently cited as a must-have product for residents and visitors of the city,” the release said.
The new TOGA Heritage flagship store fills a vacancy created when Hatsational left the space earlier this year. “The space feels like an extension of home to me, and to the customers who have already visited,” DePasquale said in the release. “The antique brick walls, patinated doors and exquisite architectural details immediately evoke a feeling of nostalgia and coziness. We have added our own touches to the space, but I feel that we are essentially stewards of this historic structure and aim to continue the legacy of Saratoga and all that came before at 322 Broadway to our best abilities.”
The move to a new location comes in a year that has already required much adaptation for small businesses. TOGA Heritage’s annual Tartan Day celebration, in April, is typically commemorated with flags hung along Broadway and a party in the former TOGA Heritage space, but this year the celebration went digital. A line of “Wee Cuddle” care packages that feature the trademark TOGA Heritage tartan (which is trademarked and officially registered with authorities in Scotland) were released to raise money to benefit essential workers at The Wesley Community, an assisted living complex in Saratoga Springs.
The company also recently launched an online store, allowing for non-residents to purchase their favorite items for delivery when they cannot be in the area.
The uncertainty of this year’s track season has also led to restrategizing sales and marketing efforts for TOGA Heritage, as the company usually sells its products at the historic thoroughbred racing track in the city, but DePasquale believes having a highly-visible storefront on a prominent intersection in Saratoga Springs will prove beneficial. “I think our loyal, returning customers will happily visit us in our new space, and the prime location and flanking windows on two of our four walls will catch the attention of those unfamiliar with our brand,” she said in the release. “Whether or not spectators and retailers are allowed at the track, people will still easily find us.”