Boutique clothiers roll with economic changes

The first wave of boutiques hit downtown in 2004, beginning with the opening of Staxx, 331 South Ave., and Shae Belle, 322 S. Campbell Ave. Now, downtown has come full circle with a new wave of stores including Pure Boutique and, coming this fall, Envy.

Envy is “very, very trendy,” said Springfield store manager Hayley Carlock. “We get everything straight from L.A.”

Envy carries a line of camis, tanks, bandeau tops and leggings in seasonal colors, Carlock said, and shoppers can create their own look with Envy’s shoes, bags, hats, jewelry, scarves and sunglasses.

The store limits its inventory to six of any given style, “and once they’re gone, they’re gone,” said Envy spokesman Mark Mercurio.

The 2,000-square-foot store at 323 E. Walnut St. will be Envy’s fourth store, Mercurio said. The others are in Columbia, Lawrence, Kan., and Manhattan, Kan. Envy targets college towns to reach its target demographic, women ages 18–30.

Envy is the junior division of Saffee’s, a Jefferson City-based women’s clothing chain established by Mercurio’s grandparents in 1923 and owned by his parents, Al and Lorraine Mercurio. Saffee’s has five locations in Jefferson City, Osage Beach, St. Joseph, Overland Park, Kan., and Lawrence, Kan.

The Osage Beach store is managed by Carlock’s grandmother, which is how she found out about Envy.

Carlock will be hiring about 10 people to work at Envy’s Springfield store, which is slated to open in mid-September; applications are being accepted online at www.envyspot.com.

The response to a new competitor downtown is enthusiastic.

“I’m very excited about every boutique that’s down here and the new one coming in,” said Alicia Wilson, co-owner of Pure Boutique, 438 W. McDaniel St. Pure Boutique opened Oct. 22 offering men’s, women’s and children’s clothing.

Meghan Chambers, owner of Staxx, agreed. “The more boutique-style stores that come down here, the better off we all are in the long run.”

But independent boutique retail is hardly exclusive to downtown. Southside startup Posh Maternity, 1111 E. Republic Road, Ste. 152, celebrated its first year in business June 19.

Owner Amy Hopper studied retail fashion marketing and had always wanted to own a specialty boutique.

“When I turned 30, I thought ‘I’d better do it, or I’ll never do it,’” she said. The result is a clothing store focused on stylish and comfortable fashions for the mother-to-be, as well as specialty items such as Hooter Hider nursing covers, novelty T-shirts and most recently, a line of kids’ clothes up to size 4T.

A challenging economy

The ongoing economic downturn has major clothing retailers nationwide reporting negative same-store sales and reduced income, but while local boutiques are seeing some impact, they are reacting accordingly.

“I have changed up our inventory and catered to what’s going on in the area with selling lower price points,” Chambers said. “We did take our summer sale earlier than usual. We reacted quicker to what’s going on because we’re not sure what’s going to happen for the next two seasons.”

At Posh Maternity, Hopper reported sales were down in June compared to May, but she doesn’t know if that’s the economy, or simply the fact that retail is usually slower in the summer. She noted that grandmothers-to-be are some of her biggest clients, and grandmas are definitely not cutting back.

For most boutique retailers, “trendy” is the watchword, but that creates special challenges.

“Inventory is the main concern in my line of business because we’re a store that quickly follows trends and moves to trends, and trends change every second,” said Staxx owner Chambers. “We have to stay very fine-tuned on what we’re seeing in the industry, how we get it into the store and the amount of time we have to ride out the trend.”

But trendiness also can mean fast turnaround and money in the bank.

“My best-selling item is William Rast jeans, and that’s Justin Timberlake’s line,” said Pure’s Wilson. Prices start at $180 and go up from there, “and those sell out the day I get them.”

Mary McGee, owner of Shae Belle since November, noted that having sales during special events downtown has served her well. “I’ve had a big sale every First Friday, and that’s been my best day every month,” she added.

Still, McGee said she is feeling a pinch because of the economy and the ongoing street construction on Campbell Avenue.

“You can’t really complain about that because it’s helping the downtown,” she said of the construction, “but in the short term … we’re feeling it.”

Since purchasing Shae Belle from founder Shannon Merced, McGee has made a number of changes to appeal to a broader market.

“Several of the lines I’ve kept, but I’ve lowered the price point,” she said. In addition to Halé Bob, Single, Ivy Jane and Trinity, McGee also offers clothing by Soda Blu and handbags, shoes and sunglasses by Chinese Laundry.

Looking ahead, the addition of the new multiplex theater and College Station are expected to bring more people downtown, and clothing retailers can’t wait.

“I think once the theater’s open and they finish the improvements, we’ll be headed in a good direction,” McGee said.[[In-content Ad]]