Contributor: Jamie Richardson
Located in Copperfield Center in Concord, Anne’s Boutique offers the latest fashion trends and seasonal styles! They have a wide selection of clothing, jewelry, handbags, scarves and so much more.
- Sisters Jill and Melissa run their boutique with a ton of energy and creativity, hosting weekly Facebook Live shopping experiences that started as a necessity during the pandemic. The dress shop was originally run by their mom, Irene.
A Mother’s Dream for Her Family
Irene was an employee of Cannon Mills until they closed. It was then that she decided to attend business school. She was a single mom and wanted a better life for her kids. She began selling clothes out of her living room in the early 70s and eventually moved her shop down to the basement.
- Jill and Melissa remember “sitting at the top of our basement stairs listening to Mom help her customers find just the right look.”
Melissa said, “As us crazy kids grew, so did her business.” Irene moved her dress shop out of her basement to a small shop on West C Street and then to downtown Kannapolis in the old JCPenney’s location. She moved one last time 25 years ago to Concord to the shopping center it’s located in today.
Irene’s Daughters Join the Team
In 2002, Melissa went to work with her mom. She had been laid off after 15 years in retail, but as she says, “there is a silver lining in every black cloud.” Along with the birth of her daughter later that year, she and her Mom became partners!
- “While my love for fashion started at a very young age, after just a few weeks of running the boutique alongside my Momma, I knew this is what I was meant to do for the rest of my life!” said Melissa.
In 2009, her sister Jill joined them and together they have continued to grow the business. They doubled their floor space and began focusing on finding new brands and adding gift items to the store. You’ll find things like picture frames, candles, etc. They also sell gift cards.
Even at 85 years old, Irene still works in the store doing anything from stocking the shelves to taking out the trash. Melissa and Jill say they have the BEST staff ever! “We have the most wonderful team of girls who help us get it all done. We have a love for each other, a love for fashion, and a love for helping others!”
- Like the various generations of staff that run the store, their customers are multi-generational as well. “We are proud to carry styles that work for all of us (ages 21-81, and various sizes from small to plus). Therefore, we know any type of body shape, age or style can find something with us!”
The store has evolved over the years. It originally started out with mostly “high-end” professional clothing, and while the quality is still excellent, the style has changed to more casual, fun, and different. “We all understand life changes in stages and so do our bodies and that is why we make it our mission to find trendy, unique pieces that will fit and flatter everyone!” They also carry accessories, handbags, shoes, and sunglasses.
Pandemic Changes How Anne’s Sold Clothing
When the pandemic hit, it encouraged them to start doing more live shows to sell their merchandise. They would showcase new releases every Friday morning and their social media grew. Every week, 300–400 people were watching at a time. There was a learning curve for the staff that took place as they tried to navigate selling to a much larger crowd online. They eventually switched over to an app and website for purchasing their products online.
- Currently, you can catch their live shows on Thursdays at 7pm. One of our favorite parts of the shows is their personal comments about people they know are watching and how they effortlessly model up to 20 different outfits with matching jewelry.
🤶 🎄 Their Christmas show is one that people look forward to year after year. Melissa as Mrs. Claus and Jill as a Christmas tree, give suggestions on great Christmas gift ideas you can purchase from their shop.
Jill and Melissa are opposites in every way, but that seems to work. They balance each other out and they say it’s great to have two sets of eyes when looking for products for the store. “We have fun!” says Melissa. They truly enjoy what they do, and it shows.
- What makes Anne’s Boutique different? Jill says, “It’s all about the personal attention and one-on-one shopping experience you get.” They understand what works and what doesn’t and can help customers pick out outfits that flatter every body type. They take the work out of putting an outfit together.
They receive between 5 to 15 boxes of merchandise every day, which means there’s always something NEW! Some of the brands they carry include; Judy Blue, UMGEE, Clara Sunwoo (featured on Kathy Lee and Hoda), Corkys Footwear, and Consuela bags. Currently, they ship around 200 orders per week in addition to 200 in-store purchases. They’ve shipped everywhere except for Hawaii and Maine, including Canada.
Their customers are like family and Jill and Melissa consider them friends. When Jill was going through a rough time, she received cards, prayers, and other support from their regular customers. They are just one BIG Annes family. As Irene would say, “You want everyone who comes through the door to feel at home.”
What Their Customers Say
I’m from Prospect, Connecticut and I heard about Anne’s Boutique a few years ago and started watching their live show on Thursdays and I was hooked. The beautiful clothes, the boutique was absolutely gorgeous, and of course, Jill and Melissa are two of the sweetest women. I found out the store was an hour away from where my sister lives in Wake Forest. I told my husband when we go to my sisters that summer we were definitely going to the store to meet the ladies, who now I consider friends. We went to see them and they couldn’t have been nicer. They knew who I was from commenting and saying Hi to them every Thursday and of course, ordering many beautiful clothes from the Boutique. I look forward to seeing them every year now when we visit my sister. It is the highlight of my trip.
– Diane
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I’m from a little town in Pennsylvania. I found out about Anne’s Boutique from a mutual friend. I had just had breast cancer and just did not feel comfortable in any of my clothes because of the fit. So, I started watching their live shows on Thursday nights and found my shirt, Gabby! (mind you I have roughly 150 Gabby tops). Jill and Melissa were my angels sent to me! They made me feel pretty again. I had to go meet my angels so my cousin and I took a road trip for 8 hours in the car and we were at Anne’s! They made us feel so welcomed that we made the trip the following year again but we added my mom to the trip! I have to add that their mother is such a beautiful and wonderful lady! She was so worried about us getting back to Pennsylvania that she asked us to text them to let them know we made it home! I can’t say enough nice things about Annes!
– Carrie
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🥳 This weekend they are celebrating Irene’s 85th birthday with a Party/Open House! There will be food and drinks, door prizes every hour, and you can register to win one of three $85 gift cards.
đź“… Friday, April 28, 10:00am-6:00pm and Saturday, April 29, 10:00am-5:00pm.
Stop by the store or take some time to look around their website, find them on Facebook, and get to know the Anne’s family!
Planning to visit? Tell ’em Cabarrus Weekly sent ya!
