When Danielle Ferchoff and Robyn Smart first met, they were both working at Gravitypope, the Whyte Avenue shoe store that has been a haven of cool for over two decades. Ferchoff had fled the corporate world, and Smart was a recent university graduate. The pair hit it off immediately, bonding over shared interests and shared nostalgia.
“We missed the same thing,” says Smart. “We missed what Whyte Ave was like when we were growing up.”
The Whyte Ave they longed for was filled with cool, locally-owned shops, selling everything from vintage clothing to cards and crafts. Those businesses — and those memories — inspired Violets, the shop Ferchoff and Smart opened online in 2021, and as a brick-and-mortar storefront in 2022.
Violets offers a curated collection of mostly Canadian-made products — everything from resin earrings, handmade quilts, travel mugs, candles and vintage fashion curated by Love Object. It’s a diverse but cohesive collection that emphasizes sustainability and uplifting small, local sellers.
“A lot of artists we’ve been working with, they’re like, ‘It’s my first time wholesaling or it’s my first time putting things in an actual store,’ so we’re sourcing really unique goods and it feels special for everyone involved,” says Ferchoff.
The shelves and racks are stocked with the well-made, quirky and stylish products that one would expect to find in their coolest friend’s apartment — the kind of wares that inspire an, “Oh my god, where did you get that?!”
At the end of 2025, the shop relocated from McCauley to Whyte Avenue, and since then, their business has only grown — thanks in part to the already dedicated community that supports the neighbouring businesses, like Color de Vino and Maven and Grace.
“The people that live in the neighbourhood are really supportive and excited about locally owned businesses,” says Smart.
It’s a value the Violets team shares. Ferchoff and Smart believe in giving back to the city, collaborating with other business owners, really getting to know their customers and building connections throughout the city’s business and arts communities.
Although they admit moving locations presented challenges — especially because they completed the design and buildout of the new location themselves — their dedication to the Edmonton community is steadfast — even if running a business isn’t always easy.
“It can be frustrating, but it’s also really rewarding, and I’m really proud of us,” Smart adds. “At the end of the day, we get to do it together and it’s really fun.”
Violets
Strathcona | 9612 82 Ave NW, Edmonton | violetsshop.com
