Posted 9:26 pm Sunday, November 08, 2009
Carlisle Offers Patrons Rare Opportunity To Get Exclusive Access To Designer Clothes
By BRIAN PEARSON
Business Editor
Tana Kay stood beneath a bright light to get a better look as she tried on a fuchsia and tangerine outfit.
Business Editor
Tana Kay stood beneath a bright light to get a better look as she tried on a fuchsia and tangerine outfit.
Nearby, her daughter, Allison Jarvis, sported a citrus-colored blouse with smoky gray pants.
Obviously not bolstering their fall wardrobe, the two this past week were carefully planning for Spring.
For more than a decade, Mrs. Kay, a Tyler resident, has bought her clothes through local Carlisle clothing consultants. Her daughter joined her about eight years ago.
Six times a year, the Carlisle outlet opens for two weeks in subleased space at 320 S. Broadway Ave., Suite 500.
Susie Lofquist (left) and Julie Thompson are co-owners of the Carlisle outlet.
Julie Thompson, a Carlisle consultant and outlet owner for a decade, said customers come in by appointment. They get a minimum of 90 minutes of undivided attention to pick out, try on and purchase clothing. There are no more than two or three customers handled at a time.
Like works of art, clothing items and accessories are referred to as "pieces" and come with names such as "Believe," "Bistro" and "Bedazzled."
"The only thing we don't sell are shoes," Mrs. Thompson said.
PERSONAL ATTENTION: Susie Lofquist (left) helps Allison Jarvis with her outfit during Jarvis’ appointment with her mother, Tana Kay, last week at the Carlisle store in Tyler.
The current sale, or "show," as the owners call it, started Friday and runs through Nov. 20.
The New York-based Carlisle, which William D. Rondina founded in 1981, launched with 100 consultants fielding a collection of about 85 clothing pieces, according to the company Web site.
The company today has more than 1,500 consultants and associates, with a clothing inventory of more than 400 pieces.
In 1998, Carlisle focused its philanthropy on the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization, to which it has since donated more than $1.4 million.
Carlisle in 2001 opened a 140,000-square-foot distribution and logistics center. That same year, the company launched Carlisle University, a program that trains consultants in business management, clothes displays, marketing and services.
Mrs. Thompson had relatively humble beginnings with Carlisle.
Born and raised in Tyler, she graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in 1984 and went on to The University of Texas. She earned an Elementary Education degree in 1988.
Instead of getting into teaching, Mrs. Thompson went to paralegal school and worked in a Dallas law firm from 1989 to 1991 before moving to Tyler.
She joined childhood friend Susie Lofquist as a paralegal at a law firm in Tyler. Two years later, with the birth of her first son, she decided to leave the legal world and be a homemaker.
Ten years ago, Mrs. Thompson started working as a Carlisle consultant, working out of her home. Three years ago, Mrs. Lofquist joined her as a partner.
Today, Mrs. Thompson is married and has three children: John, 16; Graham, 14; and Annie, 8. Her husband, Barry, handles finances for Trinity Mother Frances Hospital.
After graduating from Lee, Mrs. Lofquist went to the University of Mississippi, where she earned an education degree in 1990.
But unlike her future business partner, she decided to go into teaching. She taught third-graders for two years in the Houston area.
With her brother and father being lawyers, she had a change of heart and decided to go into the legal profession as a paralegal.
Today, her husband, Rex, is an attorney, and the couple has two daughters: Caroline, 8, and Claire, 5.
For years, Carlisle appointments were held in Mrs. Thompson's home four times a year.
But they outgrew the home, so they set up shop a year ago in the Z Daniel design studio.
Mrs. Lofquist, 41, said she and her partner keep detailed customer records on notebooks. They know every piece every customer has ever purchased and keep fabric on hand so new pieces can be matched to old ones, she said.
"With that notebook, we make sure everybody gets something unique," she said.
They even go as far as comparing customers to ensure outfit uniqueness, she added.
"We can make sure their best friend doesn't walk in (to a party) wearing the same thing," Mrs. Lofquist said. "The whole idea is a real individualized shopping experience."
Mrs. Lofquist and Mrs. Thompson travel to New York twice a year to check out new Carlisle offerings and absorb additional company support.
"The fabrics come from the best mills in the world, in France, England, Germany and Italy," Mrs. Thompson said.
Carlisle has four designers, each with a special focus, such as jackets or knitting, she said.
Mrs. Thompson said being a Carlisle consultant goes beyond the clothing.
"It's a very customer service-oriented business," she said. "It's an upper-end line of women's clothing. We cater more to the women who want to build their wardrobe and have a really good sense of style. Our goal is to help someone build a wardrobe that all goes together.
"It doesn't just end with the show. We help our clients with fitting and alterations. This is for someone who is not so much into shopping as a hobby as they are really serious about their wardrobe."
Mrs. Kay, 68, said she comes to the Carlisle consultants four times a year to buy clothes for upcoming seasons.
"They're beautiful, and they're beautifully made," she said of the pieces.
Referring to the consultants, she added, "These girls know every stitch in my closet. They know what I like. They know what colors I like. I love pretty clothes, but I hate to shop. These girls make it real easy for us, and you don't fight a mob. We have appointments a season ahead."
Mrs. Jarvis, 47, said it was her mother who inspired her to shop at Carlisle.
"I was so impressed with the quality and so impressed with what she was wearing," she said. "When you shop here, you don't make mistakes. It's all fashion-forward without being silly."
Know of a unique or off-beat business? Contact Business Editor Brian Pearson at bpearson@tylerpaper.com
or 903-596-6280.
