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Houston's Retail Market Goes Global with Souk Chic

Nov 01 2015

While Ashley Srouji was living and studying in Lebanon, she was amazed by all the local designers and brands there; most of which were not available in the U.S. These designers and brands were typically inspired by their surroundings and not by mass fashion. The concept of bringing pieces from abroad came to her and it wasn’t until after she returned and settled in Houston, that she decided to move forward with that concept.

Ashley officially launched Souk Chic May 2015 and has since held numerous pop-up shops at local businesses, as well as in her home. Think of Souk Chic as an international market, but in a more personalized setting (and without the hefty plane fare). Ashley has a keen eye for choosing styles for her inventory, which include divine Moroccan rug clutches, handbags by Lebanese-based Sarah’s Bag (including the ‘Tawleh’ style, which has been seen with Amal Clooney), Ukrainian vyshyvankas by Foberini, cheeky straw totes and hats by Caren Lola, Middle-Eastern inspired caftans by Biba & Marmise, handmade book clutches by p.s. Besitos, sandals from Greece and Spain and evil eye bracelets from Mono and Me.

Other brands include:

Aelia – Grecian handmade sandals.

BLTRX (Bellatrix) – leather handbags designed by Tamar Friedman. Each handcrafted bag is based on a take of a triangular shape, mixing 3 kinds of materials or textures, leathers and textiles.

Mola Sasa – clutches made with the traditional print by Kuna (indigenous communities of Colombia and Panama) women artisans.

KinaMania – founded by Kristina Zouein. The sandals are handcrafted in Spain and are based on the traditional Spanish sandal, the albarca.

The Souk Chic website is coming soon, but in the meantime, check out the FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to shop and get more information!

Refinery 29 and Simon Present: The Shopping Block

Oct 23 2014

The Houston Preminum Outlets were once again the setting for another great and uber-fashionable event, The Shopping Block- hosted by fashion and retail powerhouses Refinery 29 and Simon. The event was put on as an effort between R29 and Simon to collaborate and commend the small culture and take back the mall, as well as the outlets. Refinery 29’s Athena Chen mentioned that, “[Simon] provided a lot of liberties to celebrate the ‘millennial culture’ of shopping and bringing them back in this environment by bringing in curated local vendors and designers to be apart of this experience.”

Houston was stop five of the seven city mall tour. The tour started in NYC, then went to Philadelphia, followed by Boston, Miami, HOUSTON, then Los Angeles and finally back in NYC. The event design was inspired by modernist artists Donald Judd and Dan Flavin, as well as Marfa, TX and its art and architecture- especially cubism. “This experience is supposed to be interactive and allowing us to celebrate something that’s very in the moment in a very spiritual and tangible way… It’s a way to bring in a crowd to engage with consumers in a new way for Simon and to interact with new consumers that they may not have reached in the past…” Athena explained.

Houston’s event was held under a large tent, where each of the vendors and interactive stations were set up like an intimate mini shopping mall within the mall. Lovely ladies in a matching gray tee, white pleated lacy skirt paired with cute tennis shoes and socks acted as the ‘Style Concierge,’ helping with questions and handing out curated style guides. Each event has guest hosts and for the Houston edition- siblings Hanna, Sophia and Joshua Anderson were chosen to host the event. The interactive stations included beauty bars by Designer Fragrances and Cosmetic Company and Elizabeth Arden and a DIY station where guests could personalize a tote bag, taking inspiration from two Fall 2014 runway trends- sporty and embellished. The booth featured a moodboard of each trend, an example of that tote and crafting materials. The local indie boutiques included: Height of Vintage (vintage clothing), Hatton Henry (handmade leather bags and accessories), Sun Child (online boutique based in Texas), Vida Antigua (“Vintage Life” offers vintage clothing), fLuxe Jewelry (handmade jewelry from copper sheet metal and patina chemicals, inspired by Art Deco, Aztec pottery and modern geographic design), Sal Miel (handmade unisex jewelry of created from mixed metals and textures) , Busy-Being + Solid Gold (a brick-n-mortar based in Austin that carries art and product from local artists and friends) and Settlement Goods (boutique in Houston that carries emerging and independent designers who manufacture in the USA).

It was a fun afternoon to get crafty, take photos in the selfie booth, catch up with friends, shop and try for a chance to win a shopping spree valued at $1,500 at a Simon mall.

Huge thanks to the vendors, Simon, DPWPR & Refinery 29 gals (especially Athena) for a lovely day!

Lily Rain Flagship Store Grand Opening

May 11 2014

Houston-based retailer Lily Rain recently launched their 3,000 square foot flagship store in the heart of trendy Rice Village and I was on location to check it out. The store was designed by Houston-based MC2 Architect Chung Nguyen, who’s concept was an interpretation of a traditional home, complete with individualized “rooms” or departments and two really large old windows that were most likely re-purposed into mirrors (that I’m personally fawning over). I loved the decor and merchandising of the product, from the cute “floating terrariums” to the scarves hanging on a vintage rusty pool ladder. Lily Rain practically takes care of every need, whether it be fragrances to gifts to home decor and accessories to apparel. I’m a fan of their variety of fragrances, Kate Spade office supplies (bow tie paperclips…I mean…), journals and stationary by Christian Lacroix, jewelry and there are two sequin clutches that are just cheeky. Brands carried at Lily Rain include: Cynthia Vincent, Alternative Apparel, Tom Ford, Balenciaga, Eve Lom, REN, French Connection, Sara Designs, LAFCO, Roosts, Tom Dixon, Jonathan Adler, Deborah Lippmann, Butter London and RGB.

The kind folks at Lily Rain hope to bring a different and unique shopping experience to Houston consumers and hope they leave having discovered something new and unexpected.

Lily Rain Rice Village is located at:

2414 University Blvd. #180
Houston, TX 77005
(main entrance is on Kelvin Dr.)
Phone:(713)523-1902

Tag - retail