I’m not overly familiar with the term “fashion forward.” Whenever people are discussing it with me, I swear they I always say I’m “fashion forlorn.” Regardless, there is a major new retailer opening in downtown Lawrence that is about fashion forward.

As I reported in November, the clothing chain Glik’s is opening at 717 Massachusetts St., the spot formerly occupied by Sweet. But now I have more information. The store is opening at noon today as part of a sneak peek event. Its grand opening is set for 10 a.m. Friday.

I also have a better understanding of what the store is about after talking with several of the managers and executives this morning. The place is all about clothing both for men and women, but also for juniors and those of us who are a bit older.

“Our junior side is definitely very fashion forward,” said Christy Haudrich, regional manager for Glik’s. “A lot of our product comes from L.A. There is a lot of fast fashion.”

For those of you not in the know, fast fashion refers to clothing that is based off the fashion trends on display at Fashion Week and other catwalk events. (At least that is my understanding after I learned the hard way that it does not mean I should dress head-to-toe in sprinter’s Spandex.)

The store, though, also has other lines of clothing that may appeal to the moms and dads of the house. The store carries both North Face and Patagonia clothing lines for men and women. Shoes and denim also are big categories for the store. And importantly, especially to people of a certain generation, the store carries Oakley sunglasses. A pair of Oakleys and a mullet, I believe, is the definition of fashion forward. At least when I sported the look, people always insisted I walk a block in front of them.

For those of you have forgotten what we’ve previously reported about Glik’s, here’s a reminder. The company is based in Granite City, Ill., and is family owned. The Glik family has owned the business for nearly 120 years.

The company has about 65 stores in 10 states, but it is relatively new to Kansas. It opened its first Kansas store in Hays just a few months ago. As the owners of the company were traveling to Hays, they stopped off in downtown Lawrence and made a quick decision that Glik’s needed to be in the Lawrence market.

“Probably the most exciting thing about Lawrence is we like to be in a unique shopping environment,” Jeff Glik, CEO of the company, told me in November. “If Massachusetts Street isn’t one of the most unique shopping environments in North America, I don’t know what is. The fact that you don’t have a mall, and the environment of Massachusetts Street really intrigued us.”

The addition of Glik’s to downtown may be noteworthy for one other reason too. I often hear people complain that there aren’t enough retailers who have late evening hours to accommodate the large dinner crowds in downtown. Glik’s plans to stay open until 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and until 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, said Lawrence resident Sara Scott, who has been hired as the store’s manager.

Glik’s, though, will be interesting to watch for other reasons. The downtown clothing market is going through a bit of a shakeup. As I previously reported, The Buckle, one of the larger clothing retailers in downtown, has announced plans to close its Lawrence store. Based on talk on the street, I’m keeping my eyes open for other changes on that front too.