The emerging and trendy Slovak brand Dedoles set foot in the UK in early 2020. It launched their colourful range of odd socks and underwear through their UK website and became an instant hit.

Based on the success of online retail in the UK, Dedoles are now embarking on a huge roll out of retail stores across the country. This combination of on- and off-line sales has proven to work extremely well in Slovakia. It is driving their year on year explosive growth and is key to their European expansion.

Their ambitious plan is to open multiple stores across the UK within the next 3 to 5 years. This program aims to create up to 500 new jobs. The plan will be executed and managed by Somerset based Something Different (Europe) Ltd, the fully owned Dedoles UK subsidiary.

The very first shop, full of vibrant and very inviting displays of fun, comfortable and colourful products, opened its doors on 14th April in Bristol city centre. Shoppers are being drawn in by the Dedoles mascot and YouTube sensation; a giant dancing hamster, who lent a paw during the opening of the first shop.

The opening of the second shop is planned for 22nd May in the Mall @ Cribbs Causeway, Bristol. A further 4 are scheduled to open in other parts of England in September this year.

Dedoles was established in 2011 as an online retailer in Slovakia. In 2018, after expanding into online retail sales in 6 countries, they introduced their own range of 30 designs of Dedoles odd socks. Since then they successfully expanded to online sales in 20 countries around Europe as well as open their first retail store in Bratislava in 2019. Their success continued to grow. Dedoles now offers hundreds of designs in footwear, underwear and swimwear and so far have opened kiosks and shops in Slovakia, the Czech Republic and the UK.

“Starting retail in the UK is a logical one for us” Jaro Chrapko, founder and CEO of Dedoles s.r.o. said. “We have worked very closely with Something Different in Somerset for nearly 10 years. In March 2020 we decided to purchase them and made them our fulfilment house in the UK. Having this experienced warehouse and distribution company in the UK enables us to replicate the mix of web and bricks and mortar sales that has made us so successful in our home country Slovakia. We look forward to making UK consumers happy with our colourful brand.”

When asked why Bristol was the ideal location to introduce Dedoles to the UK, Jaro replied; “Bristol has a vibrant, energetic, artistic feel to it. Bristolians are true individuals and happy to express themselves. We like that in the city because we express that same spirit through our company and products. The fact that we offer two different, yet matching, socks as odd sock pair will be something that Bristol understands and likes.”

Alfred van Pelt (Managing Director UK) adds to that; “apart from that Bristol is a thriving, economically growing city. It has a great catchment area, attracts huge amounts of day visitors, and has a really good employment climate. We are really proud to have become a part of this city and excited to bring Dedoles stores to many more UK towns and cities.”