GOTSTYLE’s Founder Melissa Austria Forbes Magazine Feature with a short video by The Story Exchange

Melissa Austria may have a small menswear business, but she has big plans.

The founder of Gotstyle aims to create “the retail store of the future” by marrying the old-school high-touch “experience” she has cultivated at her two Toronto stores with the newfangled personalization and convenience that digital technologies offer. That combination, she believes, will give Gotstyle a more competitive edge in a retail industry that’s under duress and, ultimately, help it grow much larger.

Gotstyle’s stores are designed to provide the modern gentleman with everything he needs to look good — clothes, shoes, even a haircut — from a Monday board meeting to Saturday night out, Austria says. But these days, in addition to designing displays and selecting clothing cuts and colours, she’s is picking out hot new technologies to make shopping even quicker and more enjoyable for men who may not care to shop but want to dress well.

“It really boils down to, not technology for the sake of technology, but technology based on making men’s lives easier,” she says.

Read more Melissa Austria Forbes Magazine Feature about the future of retail on Forbes.com