Photo by Maria Shields O’Kelly.
NewsFour was at the launch of Kiki’s Booteeki’s summer range of vintage clothing at Dublin 4’s newest pop-up shop. The wine flowed as freely as the chatter as Kiki La Femme, pictured left, played host to an array of curious shoppers who came to investigate this new embellishment to Haddington Road. La Femme is passionate about style and her artistic eye has been a valuable asset in the setting up of this new venture.
Fashion trends often refer to history, usually giving the nod to anything less modern than the previous two decades. Downton Abbey, one of the most popular TV series of recent times, must attribute an equal amount of acknowledgement to its costume design as to its storylines. The explosion of vintage wear onto the fashion scene, which has seen a mushrooming of outlets, is therefore justified, and Kiki’s Booteeki is proud to announce that they will be catering to this demand.
La Femme told NewsFour that she wishes to hone her styling skills. “The area I would like to concentrate on in the future is Image Styling Consultancy. So that when customers say, ‘this is where I don’t feel comfortable, whether my legs or my arms etc,’ I can guide them through what best suits them and pick their colours from looking at skin tones. It’s all about, ‘what can I offer customers that they won’t find in another shop!’ For instance, in high street shopping you don’t get someone coming up to you saying, ‘Do you know what would really suit you?’”
La Femme’s motto is ‘Transcend Trend’ and that is the service she wants to offer her customers. In La Femme’s words, “I have the luxury of being able to offer this. I can feel comfortable in helping customers to choose something that little bit different. That’s not the black that they always tend to wear, but something unique that makes them feel special.”
La Femme’s mother, Dorothy Forester, had her marketing hat on when she suggested that her daughter open up her door. Forester had the foresight to see that her daughter’s creativity and warm spirit would not be effectively transmitted through the online medium alone and her style quality would be more effectively communicated by adding the face-to-face element to the service through a shop.
Speaking of Kiki’s natural sense of style, Forester said, “If you have a talent, without thinking about it you have to act on that. She didn’t have to work at it. You can’t learn something like that. It’s just in you.”
Kiki’s Booteeki is open from Thursday through to Saturday each week and if that is not suitable it is possible to call for an appointment. Credit cards are now accepted and it is possible to shop online or just pop by.
Whether you live or work in the area, Kiki’s Booteeki is worth checking out. In fact, NewsFour bumped into one happy lady who was attracted by the sign on her half-day from work and left with a bag of star buys.
Kiki is looking forward to welcoming all who wish to redeem the attached coupon at the shop, saying, “Hopefully your readers will find something they love.”
By Maria Shields O’Kelly
