Santa Monica Retailers Strategy of Welcome
Uniforms are for the military, not for the civilian women of Santa Monica, thought 27-year-old Kristin Eberts. So when she opened contemporary boutique Aura on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica on Aug. 16, Eberts knew it was time to offer something different for the area’s casual shoppers.
In addition to the jeans-and-tees uniform favored by the area’s residents, Eberts’ 1,500- square-foot boutique also carries the mild edge of bohemian-chic dresses by Karen Zambos. And when her shopper needs to impress, Aura is offering a $2,760 mod cocktail dress designed by Zac Posen.
Scores of boutiques in the area sell casual yet feminine clothing, Eberts thought. To stand out, her boutique would have to seem to fit in better in New York’s SoHo neighborhood or Los Angeles’ West Third Street. The secret of making the boutique a natural part of Montana Avenue meant that Aura had to take pains to be inviting, Eberts said.
“The fashions are higher end,” she said, “but they’re not unapproachable.”
The first sign of welcome is in the middle of the store—a custommade 1950s modern couch and two chairs. Aura’s collections are placed behind the cash register and line the boutique’s wood cabinetry.
Eberts intends that Aura’s welcome would induce wonder as well. The boutique also serves as a gallery for mid-20th century fashion photographs from the likes of Ormond Gigli and Cecil Beaton.
One of Eberts’ neighbors, Kym Wilson, said Aura opened at the right time because the avenue is changing. She is an executive with the Australia- based Leona Edmiston brand, which maintains a shop on Montana. “California fashion trends as a whole seem to be shifting back to a more balanced mix of casual and dressy,” Wilson said. “I think the [Montana] clientele is definitely shopping both ends of that spectrum.”
Eberts declined to name her investors or to state how much it cost to build the boutique. However, its construction shows a determination to make her mark. She purchased the space in March 2006, when it was a casual jeans shop called Rebel.
The first-time retailer learned the trade while running the jeans shop for a few months. Then, she closed it to make it into Aura. Eberts said she was thinking of opening another boutique eventually. The next store would be as different and as inviting as Aura.
“It feels like a home,” she said of her boutique. —Andrew Asch
