Bridget Maiellaro

Underground Hideout After 14 years of running the Only She boutique (onlyshe.com), owner Terri Vizzone decided to “shake things up.” She had enjoyed selling clothing and accessories to women but...

Tween Scene Previously only available to Chicagoans via catalog and online, PBteen (2111 N. Clybourn Ave.; 773-525-8349, pbteen.com), the latest affiliate of Pottery Barn, recently opened a store in Lincoln...

Posh Pair While growing up in Winnetka, sisters Jennifer and Maggie Gelber always joked about opening a boutique together in Chicago. “It wasn’t a serious plan. We’d just say, ‘Yeah,...

Season-Free Styles Knowing she wanted to spend her life designing clothes, Shernett Swaby (her last name rhymes with baby) launched her first collection, a line of underwear for men and...

Music to Our Ears While working as a massage therapist for a handful of big-name spas, Chicago native Lizzie Harris decided she could do it better. The entrepreneur waited a...

All in the Family In the early ‘90s, Susan Lurie opened her first boutique in the northern suburbs. Named ENAZ (444 Central Ave., Highland Park; 847-433-6466, enaz.com), which stands for...

Starting when she was 18 and an engineering student at University of California at Berkeley, Julie Liu taught herself how to design jewelry. Her hobby of creating necklaces, rings, and...

Calling All Denim Junkies The multi-designer denim boutique DNA 2050 (900 N. Michigan Ave., 3rd floor; 312-944-0040) returns to Chicago with a new home at the 900 Shops on Saturday,...

Half and Half When the economic crisis hit, boutique owners immediately began buying fewer garments and accessories, leaving many designers with overstock for each collection. Instead of accepting her loss...

Back by Popular Demand Last November, the local makeup artist Michael Perich closed his self-created botanical beauty line, CAMP Cosmetics (campcosmetics.com), after five years of business in a Glen Ellyn...