JACKSON SQUARE HEATS UP

Twelve years ago, when Rachel Eden was scouting locations for her boutique, Eden & Eden, she wanted “a European/ East Coast vibe — brick buildings with earlier architecture than most of San Francisco,” she recalls. She chose a 700square-foot space in Jackson Square, one of the city’s oldest commercial districts, lined with trees as well as structures dating back to the 19th century.

Stocking apparel and accessories by U.K. and European designers, plus vintage fashions and housewares, when Eden & Eden debuted in 2006, it was an outlier on a strip dotted with antiques dealers and art galleries. Many of them have since moved on, though, supplanted by retailers contributing to the area’s ongoing evolution. Eden, however, was a pioneer of sorts.

In the past few years, Jackson Square has emerged as the shopping locus for those in the know, attracting local creatives, Financial District types and stylish tourists alike. “It has an element of ‘cool girl’ that honestly doesn’t exist anywhere else in San Francisco,” says stylist Mary Gonsalves Kinney, who has been following the influx of boutiques and brands.

Before the development of the Design District south of Market Street in the early 1970s, Jackson Square was the city’s interior design hub. While textile firm Maharam, Danish furniture purveyor Fritz Hansen, Arader Galleries and Peter Pap Oriental Rugs have outposts on Jackson Street, such businesses are no longer as prevalent. (Just off Jackson, on Montgomery, is by-appointment-only gallery Simon Breitbard Fine Arts — which, counter to the neighborhood trend, replaced a boutique.)

Christiana Coop, co-founder of wallpaper and fabric company Hygge & West, has been frequenting the area for more than a decade, since her days living in nearby Telegraph Hill. “It was much more limited 10 years ago,” she reflects. “It’s really exploded with lots of larger brand boutiques.”

Now, stroll along the two-block stretch of Jackson Street between Columbus Avenue and Sansome Street and, with a few slight detours, you can get your fix of bohemian dresses, sustainably made sneakers, custom suiting, organic skincare products and more.

“I think Isabel Marant sort of kicked things off,” Coop adds, referring to the Parisian label that bowed in 2015 in a former whiskey warehouse.

Who does Gonsalves Kinney see as the typical shopper here? “They know what they like because they travel all over the world and see different fashion represented and want what no one else has.”

And there are draws beyond retail: “I like to stop by the Battery afterwards for a quick bite and drink,” she says. No doubt, the 5-year-old members-only club has brought other fashion-forward folks to the neighborhood, too — as have highend hair salons diPietro Todd and Spoke & Weal, both of which relocated from elsewhere in San Francisco last year.

Gonsalves Kinney points out that as “Union Square has become almost impossible to navigate with construction and streets blocked off,” Jackson Square provides a fresh, stress-free shopping experience.

There’s also a perception that it is “definitely less touristy” than Union Square, says Michael Jones. On a recent Saturday afternoon, the CEO of startup BrainFizz VR LLC was picking up a suit from the Black Tux, which opened on Jackson Street two years ago.

For Andria Tay, who works in marketing, the boutiques here are a good option when looking for something specific — a dress for a special occasion or an item by a particular label — rather than the kind of one-stop shopping that department stores deliver. Standing in front of a historic landmark building, Tay observes that “it feels a little more old school, like a shopping district you might find in London or Paris.”

Which makes sense: In addition to Isabel Marant, there’s A.P.C., also out of Paris. In 2016, after decamping from Paris to San Francisco, Pia Øien Cohler opened Pia, The Store, which carries European designers like Cédric Charlier, Rochas, Y/Project and Marine Serre. Although she recently announced that the shop is closing Jan. 19, it has certainly contributed to the cosmopolitan feel.

Fjällräven, a Swedish maker of clothing and bags, occupies a storefront, as does Zimmermann, an Australia swimwear and ready-to-wear brand that celebrated its grand opening in October. Totaling 2,800 square feet, the store holds sisters Nicky and Simone Zimmermann’s complete offerings.

In November, Knot Standard, specializing in bespoke menswear, relocated from Union Square to a two-story venue on Montgomery Street. According to CEO and co-founder John Ballay, its San Francisco clientele “is a mix of people who work in financial services and technology, and a lot entrepreneurs and creative individuals.” Suiting in personality-packed patterns, not to mention hues beyond blues, grays and blacks, are not uncommon.

Also in November, True Botanicals, which relies on natural and organic ingredients for its skincare line, arrived on Washington Street. Its first brick-andmortar allows for “experiences that are only possible in person,” such as person-