Total Beauty, a Unique Boutique, That Keeps Fort Pierre Well Dressed!
It’s amazing for a town the size of Fort Pierre to have a clothing store that caters not just to our rodeo crowd but to concert goers and those interested in casual dress or something a little fancier for that special event.
Michel Williams and Eric Drageset began their clothing adventure 14 years ago in May of 2010. Visiting with Williams in the interview for FPDC’s March Business of the Month, I got the impression that she likes what she does and still finds it an adventure. There is excitement in her voice when she talks about her products and going to market.
Williams and Drageset go to market in Dallas every year and went in January this year. While they are at market, they see a lot of new fashions and figure out what will work here. They sign up with new companies.
“We had a very successful trip to market this year,” said Williams. “ We haven’t received all of our things yet but we will be getting a lot of new things from there that are exciting.” They are working on a “big reveal” they will announce in the next month or two.
“For spring,” Williams said, “Lots of bright colors, pinks etc.; fringe might be going out but it will probably come back around. The wider legged jeans are still doing great. We carry “Rock N’ Roll and Ariats. The early warm weather has influenced shoppers but with the late winter/early spring snow expected that will bring shoppers back to the boots and warm coats.”
Williams tries to accommodate people traveling to Fort Pierre for events by adjusting hours in the summer. “We open earlier and stay open until everyone quits coming in and we do add Sundays when there is an event going on.”
When asked about the age range of her customers, Williams responded, “We try to take care of all ages. We even have items for “newborns.” For men and even our kids, we carry hats, jeans, shirts, boots . . . In footwear, we carry Ariat, Tanner Mark, Roper, Corral, Twisted X.
Williams said, “We have been very fortunate in that business has been steady and we have even added new clients and are sending merchandise further away. ‘Word of mouth’ and Facebook have been the main marketing tools for Total Beauty.”
The Total Beauty success story is no little feat in the challenges of the last four years. We are also thankful for all that the owners give back to their community as volunteers and in helping to raise money for needy causes.