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“I hear more often than not, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s so colorful in here!’” says Julie Mangels, owner of Toulon (102 W. Lockwood, 314-918-1008). The new Webster Groves boutique is vibrant, with multihued shoes from Corkys and Elite, dresses from Radzoli and Ronnie Salloway, and large Mud Pie totes with marine-life drawings on bright backgrounds. Mangels bought the space that once housed Jennie Annie’s, keeping what she loved about the old shop, but emphasizing local and fair-trade lines.
Why did you name the boutique Toulon?
We started with the word boutique. It’s French, but we didn’t want to brand it with something Parisian. And we started just looking at the names of cities in France. Toulon resembled in character what we wanted to loan to the store. It’s actually a little town on the south coast of France, and it’s a lot more casual—it’s a lot more affordable place for visitors to stay.
Did you design the store to have a certain look?
I like color and I like practicality, to the degree that when people buy something, they feel like they can wear it more
than once.
What are some of your favorite lines in the store?
Before + Again seems to fly off the shelves. That is manufactured right here in St. Louis. Jenny Krauss is another one I’m excited about. It’s fair trade. Monarch Jewelry’s proceeds go to supporting International Crisis Aid. That’s an organization that’s headquartered right here in St. Louis; they build safe houses and provide resources to girls that are coming out of the sex-trafficking industry.
It sounds like your shop definitely has a conscience.
I previously worked for a nonprofit agency here in St. Louis that serves disabled adults or adults with developmental disabilities in an on-site program. Having vendors that have a cause behind them means a lot to me.
Photograph by Kevin A. Roberts
