Dell Rapids boutique to replace shop that’s closing at The Bridges
Jan. 18, 2021
A Brookings-based boutique is closing its Sioux Falls store, but a Dell Rapids shop will fill the space.
The Mason Jar Boutique will take over the J.Ella Boutique lease at The Bridges at 57th at the end of February, J.Ella owner Jael Thorpe said.
J.Ella has marked its clothing and other merchandise at 30 percent off. The Mason Jar is purchasing the furnishings.
“We’ve been looking for a location in Sioux Falls for a while,” said Katie Wilson, who started The Mason Jar in 2014. In addition to the store in downtown Dell Rapids, there’s also a location in Cave Creek, Ariz. That’s where Wilson grew up, and her sister manages the store.
The business also has a warehouse in Dell Rapids because about 90 percent of its sales are online, Wilson said.
The Mason Jar and J.Ella offer “pretty similar styles,” she said. “ We have a really wide demographic. It’s all women’s clothing with some styles that our 20-year-olds love, and my mom shops with us all the time.”
In addition to clothing, the Sioux Falls store will carry accessories and some “gifty items,” she said. In Dell Rapids, the boutique is connected to a flower shop, where Wilson sells fresh flower arrangements, home decor, picture frames and gift items.
The grand opening for the new store will be March 6.
Thorpe said leaving Sioux Falls after six years is bittersweet, but the pandemic forced her to re-evaluate the business.
“If last year had been different, we maybe would have kept trucking along,” Thorpe said of operating the Sioux Falls boutique. “The year made us look at opportunities and decide which chapters needed to close.”
The focus will shift to expanding the Brookings boutique, which she started in 2010, growing Gameday Social Apparel Co. and starting another venture, Social Kid Outfitters.
Gameday started providing licensed college apparel almost eight years ago and really started expanding in the past couple of years, Thorpe said.
“It’s unique university designs that are more localized, fun and trendy than the national brands can provide,” she said. Most of the collegiate merchandise is for SDSU, USD and NDSU.
A lack of sporting events because of the pandemic gave Gameday a push to expand into state and city designs, Thorpe said.
“Part of that is where we are in South Dakota, a lot of us are feeling more state pride than we have in the past. That’s tied to how strong South Dakota has remained through the pandemic. That allowed us to develop a South Dakota line that is fun.”
Gameday apparel is carried in almost 40 retailers, including Scheels, college bookstores and boutiques, she said.
The next chapter for Thorpe is Social Kid Outfitters, which will launch in April. She’s still finalizing the concept but plans to curate high-quality educational toys, activities and art supplies, along with children’s apparel.
“I’m inspired by products that force kids to be imaginative,” she said. “I have three boys, and they love to build things.”
Social Kid Outfitters will build on her experience of sourcing products for Gameday. The merchandise will be items that currently aren’t available in the market, she said.
