Megan Healy Corey '02 and Amy Trelenberg '02: Shop Mamie opens in Trolley Square

8/27/2013

Lots of teenage girls tending their wardrobes dream of one day opening their own boutique to rescue fashion victims.

But for best friends and Wilmington natives Megan Healy Corey'02 and Amy Trelenberg '02, launching their apparel and accessories store in cyberspace was a safer bet.

After spending five years running the cheap chic shopmamie.com, the pair opened their first retail location in Wilmington’s Trolley Square earlier this week.

Lots of teenage girls tending their wardrobes dream of one day opening their own boutique to rescue fashion victims. But for best friends and Wilmington natives Megan Healy Corey '02 and Amy Trelenberg '02, launching their apparel and accessories store in cyberspace was a safer bet.

After spending five years running the cheap chic shopmamie.com, the pair opened their first retail location in Wilmington’s Trolley Square earlier this week. “Trolley is hurting for something like this,” says Trelenberg, noting that bars and restaurants dominate the nighttime entertainment district.

As the sign says, Shop Mamie is pronounced (MAY-me) and is a combination of the 29-year-old duo’s first names. The store at 1942 Gilpin Ave. technically opened Monday, but Corey (with a broken toe) and Trelenberg (who is getting married next month) were busy pricing items earlier this week. A kickoff party is scheduled for Sept. 12 at 4 p.m., featuring drinks, snacks, music and discounts.

The 600-square-foot store across from St. Ann’s Catholic Church is the former home of Sweeney’s (and later Shanley’s) Irish Imports. While emerald green might be the “it” color this year, the Mamie girls chose a mix of pink and leopard print to doll up the location.

The compact but orderly space carries more than 350 items, including darling black cocktail dresses with sheer insets, faux leather clutches adorned with bows, chunky necklaces and geometric-print totes. Most items are priced under $100 and mirror what’s available online.

New additions are customized monogrammed vases, trays, necklaces and interchangeable belt buckles designed by Buckled to Go, a Wilmington-based online store. Shop Mamie also carries a small selection of men’s apparel, including plaid dress shirts, cardigan sweaters with suede elbow patches and rugged vests.

Riding boots and booties in real and vegan leather ($65 to $180) are scheduled to arrive next week.

Corey, originally from the Highlands, and Trelenberg, from Alapocas, met at the Archmere Academy in Claymont when they were 14 years old. They enjoyed styling each other, raiding their moms’ jewelry chests and crisscrossing Delaware for interesting boutique finds. The two went their separate ways in college – Corey attending Virginia Tech for fashion management and Trelenberg at Penn State for accounting.

They reunited after graduation and spent months developing a business plan. After being denied a business loan, the friends gathered enough savings to buy their first season of clothes for the website. At the time, Corey worked in medical sales and Trelenberg at an accounting firm.

At their launch party in March 2008, they sold virtually all their inventory that night. Shortly after, the business partners quit their respective jobs to work at shopmamie.com full-time. They attracted clients through word-of-mouth from their large social network. Their flirty apparel and accessories have appeared in Redbook and Woman’s Day. Both bubbly and gorgeous, Corey and Trelenberg snapped photos of each other modeling new arrivals for the website.

To drum up business, they held trunk shows at sororities, organized in-home fashion parties and set up tables at fashion events around the country. Eventually, the co-owners moved out of their rented townhouse to an office space in a historical mansion on Delaware Avenue. From there, they managed their online traffic, which averages 5,000 visits a day. The average order is $100, Corey says, which includes free shipping.

At times, the pair considered opening a store but never settled on the right spot. Shop Mamie sells items to three satellite locations: Serendipity in Doylestown, Pa., and Avalon, N.J., and Stainton’s in Ocean City, N.J. Trelenberg says they selected Wilmington for their first retail store based on demand from the community. They signed a two-year lease and expect to be a fixture in the neighborhood for years to come – a favorite stop for date night dresses and bridal shower gifts.

Shop Mamie has sold apparel and accessories at area events, including the Wilmington Flower Market and Guilty Girls Warehouse Sale. Before the store opened, customers were able to try on and purchase items at the Wilmington office by appointment only.

Targeting women in their 20s to 50s, Shop Mamie buys from small manufacturers and designers. Corey and Trelenberg scout the latest trends at buying trips in New York and Los Angeles eight times a year.

“We do think of the Delaware customer,” Corey says. Belly shirts, which have been all the rage this summer in New York and Los Angeles, don’t fly with young professionals here, she says. For the fall, Corey expects strong sales among bell-shaped coats, pleated maxi skirts, shift dresses, skinny jeans, booties and anything in an Aztec print.

Shop Mamie also runs the fashion blog Stylememamie.com. Corey draws style inspiration from celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe and actress Rachel Bilson.

Website sales have declined this summer as Corey and Trelenberg have focused on the new store. So far, they have hired one employee to manage the location while they are away.

Despite being friends for 15 years and business partners for five, the two say they rarely bicker.“We have highs together and we struggle together,” Corey says. “We bond.” Trelenberg agrees: “The most we disagree on is whether we like a dress or a sweater.”

Source: Delaware Online August 21, 2013

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