How to Shop Like a Pro and Develop the Habits of the Happiest Customers

Having combined retail experience of 35 years (25 for Mimi and 10 for Rae), we think we know the best way to shop in store and want to share it with you! 

The way most clothing stores are laid out is very intentional. Racks are merchandised to be whole outfits with mix and match styles in coordinating colors. Retail management spends a great deal of time on this, mostly called "visuals" or "merchandising". Next to having the doors open, it's the most important feature of a shop. Coupled with one on one customer care, one will have the best boutique experience. But the intention doesn't always seem translate to even the most seasoned customer. There are many customers that shop how we intend, and they leave happy, with something they love! Equally, we see customers who scan randomly, don't want help, and leave thinking we don't have anything for them. We want to change that! 

If you are shopping to buy, these are some tips we think you'll love.

Start at the front of the store: This seems like a no brainer, but you would be surprised. The displays at the front of the store, particularly table displays are showing you the very newest and current season styles and usually this means there is plenty of available sizing. If you are a shopper who likes to regularly check your favorite stores for new arrivals, this is essential! If you make your way immediately to the back of the store, you will find styles you have seen before and styles with limited sizing which can lead to disappointment. 

Take advantage of help: Boutiques like to hire people who are very skilled at what they do and we want to help you. We have expert knowledge about the store and know which styles might work for you based on size, style, occasion, etc! 9 times out of 10, a customer will buy a style we choose for them rather than the other way around. This is because we know the inventory well. We are choosing based on seeing ourselves and others in the same styles over and over again and tracking what works and what doesn't. Accepting help from stylists can sometimes save you the emotional turmoil of trying on piece after piece and getting fatigued because the item doesn't fit how you envisioned it on the hanger.

Don't get hung up on sizing: In 2026, sizing is all over the place and frankly it can hurt your feelings if you get too into the numbers. As a boutique who carries 20+ brands at a time, we know better that anyone that size doesn't matter anymore. With clothes being made all over the world with different standards everywhere, sizing is more like a guideline than a strict rule. We have brands we tell people to size up in and equally to size down in. I  have clothes all the way from a medium to XXL even though a measuring tape says I should be a 14. This is the time to take advantage of help and ask how something fits and what size you should try on. 

Shop with the right people: Nothing can ruin a shopping trip faster than a friend with a bad attitude. We see it all the time, someone comes in excited and ready to shop, and a companion categorically puts them down in everything until they leave sad and disappointed. Shop with someone who likes to shop, and more importantly likes you! 

Try on before you buy: The joy of in person shopping is that you know what you're getting right away and that it will work for you. Unless you are someone who just knows it will fit (there really are some of you out there, Mimi is one), trying on is best. This saves you disappointment, time and energy of returning, and the annoyance of navigating boutique return policies. 

Shop for who you are now, not who you want to be! This can be a mindset or it can show up in actually buying clothes that don't fit you. Be realistic about who you are, what will fit you, and what you are going to wear. Most of us can look in our closets and find a piece with tags still on - that is now out of style because we expected ourselves to reach an arbitrary and equally unachievable goal. Conversely, don't count yourself out! We are our harshest critics. Wear the outfit that makes you feel chic and stylish even if you think others might judge you. Those people can dress however they like as well! Life is short, make it your runway!