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Photography courtesy of Leopard Boutique
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Photography courtesy of Leopard Boutique
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Photography courtesy of Leopard Boutique
Leopard Boutique owner Rachel Sauter says that with current trends, it’s a fun time to get dressed every morning. So it must be a really fun time to own a boutique offering the “bold colors, primary shapes, and racing stripes” that fashionistas are pulling from the racks.
Sauter's clothing shop recently opened its third location in downtown Maplewood this past November, adding to their other locations in Webster Groves and St. Charles.
Leopard Boutique has always had an office-only space in Maplewood, where the merchandise has been processed and the social media team was based. When the lease was up, Sauter—who loves Maplewood and lives there with her family—decided to open a storefront with an office space in the back.
“The third store is allowing us to mix it up a little bit,” she says. “The locations are going to get treated a little bit like their own entities. Each location will have some things that are the same—like the hot sellers will go to all of the stores—but they will have their own variety. Even though it is near the Webster location, it is just a different vibe.”
Photography courtesy of Leopard Boutique
Inside Leopard Boutique's recently opened Maplewood location
While the hot sellers this year, including “prints, colors" and “a lot of things with stars,” are universal across all three locations, Sauter says the patrons range from store to store. “[The Maplewood store] is already pulling a totally different group of people,” Sauter says, adding that customers are coming to that location from Dogtown, University City, South City, and The Hill.
Since the first Leopard Boutique location opened six years ago, Sauter says she and her team have learned what works and what just doesn’t, with the customers staying as the main driving force in their decisions.
Leopard Boutique has new items each week, available online or in store. They aim to offer a wide variety of merchandise with an emphasis of staying on trend. “We try to have those pieces that are fun and easy to play with and really give your look that punch of pizazz,” Sauter says.
