Avaley Jane opened on De Soto’s East Main Street on Aug. 8.
The boutique, owned by Mandy and Jason Rees of De Soto, is located at 221 E. Main St. next to the Madd Heifer and Arlington Event Center.
The shop’s hours are 5-8 p.m. Tuesdays; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fridays; and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. The business is closed Sunday and Monday.
The name, Avaley Jane, is a combination of the names of Mandy’s daughters: Ava, who is starting high school and Chaley, who is starting kindergarten. The couple also has three sons. Jane is Mandy’s middle name, as well as her grandmother’s and Ava’s.
Mandy, who works full time for the Jefferson County government, started the women’s boutique online in February.
“I love clothes, shoes, purses and everything girly, and I’m very picky on clothes,” she said.
Mandy enjoys helping people pick out clothing, and she shops around to find things that are cute, trendy and affordable.
“It is hard to find cute, trendy clothes that are affordable,” she said. “A lot of stores are closing.”
Mandy said the dream to start Avaley Jane grew out of a passion for fashion, confidence and creating something meaningful. When the storefront on East Main became open, she immediately inquired about it.
Avaley Jane’s opening coincided with the East Main Street block’s End of Summer Celebration, featuring music, vendors and food trucks.
“The amount of people there was amazing,” Mandy said.
The space limits what she can sell in the store.
“I can’t have everything I have on the website in here,” she said.
Avaleyjane.com offers more of a selection and customers can ask for a specific item to be added to the store’s inventory.
“I can bring it in the store, and they can try it on,” she said. “You’re not just limited to (what I have in the store).”
In addition to women’s clothing, she has a selection of women’s shoes, purses, skin care, beef tallow, jewelry, hats and hair accessories. She also sells squishies, which are squeezable toys or collectibles designed to deform when pressed and that are popular with children, including her own.
Mandy is in the process of clearing out her summer inventory for fall inventory. She has two part-time employees, and she said Ava helps her with organizing.
Mandy and her husband both grew up in De Soto and she is excited to be a part of the business community in De Soto.