By DANIEL SUDDEATH
Laurie Jacobs created a way to combine business ambition and leisure time with her friends.
Mariposa opens Monday in New Albany’s White House Centre at 222 Pearl St. It’s a mix between up-end consignment and houseware boutique, as customers can sell their items and also buy clothing.
Jacobs, who is a New Albany resident, enjoys frequenting the consignment shops along Frankfort Avenue and Bardstown Road in Louisville with her friends.
“We normally compare it with a girls lunch out,” Jacobs said.
She aspires to bring some of the feel from the popular Louisville consignment shops to downtown New Albany.
Mariposa will feature a lady’s day each month with events like wine tastings, massage therapy and a fashion show.
Unlike the typical consignment store, Jacobs will buy clothes and houseware from consignors before they are put up for sale. Usually, the consignor has to wait for someone to buy their items before being paid.
“That way they don’t have to deal with coming back every week until their item sells,” Jacobs said.
Clothing for men, women and teenagers will be offered, as will specialty items such as bedding, party dresses and suits for children.
The consignment items will be upscale just without a big price tag that accompanies new purchases, Jacobs said.
“I think there’s a need for it here,” she said of the consignment business.
Mariposa will have about 2,100 square feet of space. Of the room, 600 square feet will be used by Sellersburg resident Stephanie Prather to sell custom made handbags.
Prather will also help manage the store, which will be adjacent to the Gallery on Pearl art store also in the White House Centre.
“We’re hoping to compliment one another,” Jacobs said of Mariposa’s relationship with the Gallery on Pearl.
It’s her first go-around as owner of a consignment business, but Jacobs has experience running other establishments locally including a construction outfit.
The White House Centre was chosen for Mariposa — which is Spanish for butterfly — because of its downtown location and reasonable lease prices, Jacobs said.
Mariposa doesn’t have a phone number established yet, but you can reach Jacobs on her cell phone at 502-939-9903.
The opening for Mariposa will be Monday, but the store’s normal hours will be 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays.
HOURS OF OPERATION
• 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Friday
• 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday.
Closed Sunday and Monday
