From Belltown to Pioneer Square, a stroll along 1st Avenue is a perfect microcosm of Seattle’s lifestyle. Our major art museum, eateries, jewelers, locavores, clubs and pubs – even a historic music venue – are all there along a mile stretch.
One of the true gems is sandylew, a women’s boutique that offers a beautiful variety of smart-casual and one-of-a-kind clothing, hats, scarves, eyeware, jewelry and more – from hundreds of designers. It’s a go-to destination for ladies seeking to add fun to their fashion. It’s also a shop that exudes the playful personality of its owner, Sandy Lew-Hailer.
A long-time designer and creative stylist, Lew-Hailer has made sandylew a must-visit shop for locals, as well as for convention attendees and tourists. Her store motto says it all: “Having fun getting dressed.”
We visited the boutique to talk with Lew-Hailer about creativity, couture and community.
We couldn’t squeeze everything into our video interview, so here’s more from our chat. Learn how Lew-Hailer gives back to community and helps provide her clothing and accessories to people well beyond Seattle.
What makes a brick-and-mortar shop successful?
“Part of it is location. We’re accessible to local people. We have a large local following. And we’re accessible to tourists and to people who are here on conference. When you walk into a store and you can see and touch and feel, and see how it feels on, I think that’s really important. There is so much more for you can choose from here. (Store customers agree.) And we do a lot of remote sales with people who have been here and contact us – and we send them boxes of items. We know them and we send them things that we think they will like – not just online shopping.”
I’m very interested in hearing how small businesses in Seattle contribute to their community – beyond providing product and services to customers. Do you have a special foundation or initiative that aligns with your beliefs?
“First, In the shop, weirdly, there is a certain kind of thing that’s therapeutic about dressing and I think we hear a lot of women’s stories and we’re very open and good listeners. I think that’s very important.
“In terms of the greater community, every season we bring in things that are seasonal. We sell them and then they [unsold items] go on sale at the end of the season. And then at the end of that, we give them, at this time, to Mary’s Place because I embrace their goal to help women and families.
“In other areas, I support a local organization called Path With Art – which I think is a fabulous organization. It helps both men and women with art classes that are free and that gives people a voice in music, in dance and two- and three-dimensional art and writing. It can be very cathartic. It can be very life-changing. It’s wonderful. They had a fashion show where adult students made costumes out of reused material. It was really fun and it did exactly what it was supposed to do. I like to think that it really changed their life. It certainly changed me and exciting it was to get to know them.”
Congratulations on receiving a Small Business Hero nod from Puget Sound Business Journal. What comes with that honor?
“I don’t know! I was asked to attend a luncheon and we chatted about our challenges. We were all different kinds of business owners. I thought it was quite interesting but I’m not really sure what it meant.”
What is the biggest challenge facing Seattle and how do you think it should be addressed?
“We are challenged by the growth of Seattle and the changing traffic patterns. I’m intensely challenged by the parking here. There is some relationship here on this block with the Showbox – which is owned by a large national company. They get these 24-hour, no-parking regulations on our block – sometimes for a 10-day period – preventing customers from parking outside.”
“I think they [city officials] fail to understand and make it more impossible to exist. I understand the city needs the money but it’s mind-boggling.”
The boutique sandylew is located at 1408 1st Avenue, between Pike and Union streets. It’s open daily, 11am-6pm.
This video/blog post is one in a series of spotlight features on local businesses with deep connections to our community. If your business wants to be included, please contact me through community news, information and deals site Parkbench.com (with Will Springer-sponsored sites in Belltown, downtown Seattle, Denny Triangle and Seattle waterfront).