The BBB
The BBB - Brains Behind the Brand - my name is Patricia Moore and I've been a fashionista since birth. My mother was my first influence, being that she loved fashion, she loved big church hats, so much so that she took a class on making hats. She was my first introduction into boutique shopping. She shopped at Lowe's Boutique for most of her clothing and mine, and boutiques in the Kemah, TX area. I just remember going into those little shops and the uniqueness of them. For instance the shop she frequented in Kemah was small, quaint and personal. There were never more than 4-5 ladies shopping whenever we were there and the sales staff gave each one personal attention, my mother always left with a minimum 5 bags full. The clothing was beautiful, quality and not sold anywhere else! Her friends, whom she shared/showed her loot with, knew don't expect to find this in the big box or local department store. I also don't recall any of her friends shopping like she did. Anywho, Lowe's offered her a sit down wine and cheese party, when I shopped. The clothing was already staged in the dressing room they ushered me into and I just came out and modeled for my mother who either gave a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down". Fast forward, I grew into a shopper, always loved it and it was definitely my retail therapy at all transisitions and pivotal stages of life, whether I could afford it or not - shopping relieved my stress! In 2010 I began the year looking forward at what I wanted to do long term, long after I retired my corporate hat. My husband, said, "whatever you do, do something that you love!" Well - I loved shopping. After a meeting orchestrated by my sister Dawna to the Dallas Market - it was sealed in my mind - a boutique where women can shop and find unique, quality items. I was a shopper and traveling with my job at the time and my favorite boutique shop was in Atlanta, GA - Phoebe's Boutique. Every trip to Atlanta rendered a trip to Phoebe's and finally getting information on how I could shop when I wasn't in Atlanta. Talk about moving fast without alot of strategy in place. March of 2010 on what I foresaw as my last trip to Atlanta or nearing that end, I asked Phoebe if she would mentor and assist me, she agreed. With Phoebe's contacts and what my sister had found for me, I set off to claim the name and open a business bank account. May 25, 2010 - N-V-Us Fashions and Boutique was born and I had no clue of what I was doing. What I knew was that I loved to shop, I had a BBA and I could figure it out. Well I was in for a surprise, to say the least. I began selling everything out of a room in my home, then added A Greater Look Salon, where I would Pop-Up every Saturday. Two years later and physical location was added at Wonderland of the Americas mall. Two years later, N-V-Us Fashions and Boutique would leave the mall to become an online / mobile boutique. From 2012 to present I continue to shop for unique, quality pieces and during the pandemic transitioned to more "readily" available stock. The dropship strategy had worked for the online store for many years, as this allowed less overhead without having to carry inventory. In 2020 when the pandemic hit and more people began to online shop, I changed the game plan to carry 90% of the online inventory for immediate shipping versus dropshipping. I've also began a more strategized approach to running the online store, but that's not to say there are still hiccups. During the pandemic a normal order was taking more than 15 days in shipping. I still love what I do and I still love to shop for others and I still love it when a customer tells me they get alot of compliments when they wear N-V-Us products, especially products they may have purchased years ago. Also, many customers that have been with me since 2010 are still onboard. This stuff warms my heart and is what is the driving force, along with the fact that when I retire, this business will be in place versus forming, God willing. Not bad for an old lady!
