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haute stuff boutique Mineola206 W. Broad

By Kamren Thompson

Haute Stuff Boutique, which opened in August 2010 in Mineola, Texas, is more than a consignment clothing store. Shiloh Alexander’s love, not only for fashion, but also for her customers, quickly becomes

apparent when she talks about her job. “I’ve met so many amazing people,” she said.

“The one thing we have in common is clothes. We all love them. We all need them.”

She likens her job to that of a bartender or hairdresser because people come to her for advice about insecurities.

“I like to help people I meet in the store find something they are looking for, not just in clothing, but maybe that part of themselves they are trying to express and don’t know how,” she said. “It brings me great satisfaction to help people find a little more of themselves that maybe they couldn’t find otherwise.”

Haute Stuff Boutique carries a variety of “trendy”

clothing and accessories that Alexander handpicks. Many of the items in the store are brand-name merchandise.

Her biggest seller is designer jeans. She likes to offer her customers higher-end clothing and accessories at a lower cost to increase accessibility.

“I like making them available for people who may not be able to afford to pay retail,” she said. “They may not be able to spend $400 on a purse, but they

may be able to spend $150.”Alexander also offers

“mall” brands like Wet Seal, American Eagle Outfitters and Abercrombie & Fitch.

Haute Stuff Boutique is a consignment store, meaning people bring merchandise to an owner who sells it and retains a portion of the profit. When she evaluates merchandise, she looks for specific things customers probably will not see anywhere else.

“I look for brands. I look for condition and whether it has style and is desirable,” she said. “I also look for things that are kind of funky and maybe a little out there.”

Hours of OperationWed. - Fri. 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Sat. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

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March 30, 2011  •  31  

FeaturesHer store is targeted at an attitude and not a

specific age group.“I target people who like to have fun, be

comfortable and confident,” Alexander said. “Some stuff is a little sexy. Some stuff is a little preppy, but really just a youthful attitude.”

Most consignment stores target multiple audiences with maternity, baby, children and more mature clothing lines.

“I wanted Haute Stuff Boutique to set me apart from other retail consignment stores that kind of cater to anyone on the street,” she said. “I wanted to have a name that would grab the demographic I’m going for.”

This is not the first experience Alexander has had with a consignment store. As a teenager, her mother opened a similar store in a small town.

“We were a little bit of an alternative store,” she said. “There just wasn’t anything that catered to that age group, not

necessarily teenagers, but more of an attitude of youth, fun and individuality, and that’s the group I try to cater to.”

Alexander, a single mom, who is originally from Tyler, spent half of her life in the Pacific Northwest.

“My experience in Washington and Oregon, where things are a little more laid back, a little more creative, a little more liberal, probably has had a huge influence on me and my ideals and my perspective on life,” she said.

Alexander carried a sketchbook throughout junior high and high school. She dreamed of becoming a fashion designer.

“I got married and had a child almost immediately at 22,” she said. “I ended up a single mom with very little education, not a lot of marketable skills and waitressing at a little place in town for 11 years.”

Shiloh Alexander, owner of Haute Stuff Boutique. Photo by Tiffany Drake

32  •  The Pine Curtain

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After a series of events and inspiration from Gabe Berman’s novel, Live Like a Fruit Fly, she decided to make a change.

“I picked the book up and read the first 100 pages. The next day I started looking for retail space and the ball was rolling,” she said. “In a two- or three-month window, I made it happen.”

The decision and process was fast. “I know when the time is right,” she said. “I go with my gut, and I just go for it. That’s what I did, and it’s worked out tremendously.”

Alexander has yet to have a “zero day,” meaning she has sold something every day the store has been open over the last seven months

“I’ve had anywhere from as little as six customers in a day to 50,” she said. “I may not have made rent on that day, but every day has been a success.”

Since opening, Alexander hasn’t had to search out consigners.

“I’ve been really fortunate, especially in this small area,” she said. “I get new stuff in almost every day. I may get two new things in or I may get 60 new things in.”

She said she gets consigners from all over East Texas including Dallas, Longview and Chandler, and she usually requires 50 to 60 percent or less of what consigners profit.

For her, the only tedious thing about owning the boutique is the bookkeeping. “I do everything myself, by hand,” she said. “I don’t use software in tagging, pricing or bookkeeping.”

Still, her business has been her dream and now a dream achieved.

“I did what I had to in order to make ends-meet for a long time, and I just found it within myself to do what I love, and it’s been successful,” she said. “Your dream—regardless of what it is—is valid.”

Photo by Tiffany Drake