Driver error is being blamed after a minivan crashed into a storefront in northeast Calgary on Sunday afternoon.

Police say the driver hit the gas instead of the brake in the parking lot of a strip mall at First Avenue and Edmonton Trail N.E. just after 2 p.m. and ended up crashing into a beauty supply store.

The store was closed at the time and no injuries were reported.

Zachary Lee and his girlfriend Paige Anderson were on their way home from volunteering and were stopped at the lights nearby when they heard the crash.

Firefighters check a building after a minivan crashed into a storefront at a northeast Calgary strip mall on Sunday afternoon. (Supplied by Zachary Lee)

"What it sounded like was just glass busting," he said. "I don't know if you've ever stood next to a window when it breaks, but you could hear that, you could hear the glass hit the ground and you could hear metal bending."

Anderson is a nurse, so the pair ran to the minivan to help those inside.

"I pulled the side door open and we asked them if they were all right and they said they were fine, they just looked really embarrassed," said Lee.

Firefighters checked the building and found no structural issues.

Police say the driver could receive a ticket for the mishap.