Feb. 15, 2019

The new owners of Elegant Mommy are expanding their business.

Lindsey Auch and Kelcey Smith bought the business and building at 207 W. 37th St. next to Hy-Vee in October. They are growing into the Educated Mommy space that had been in the south end of the building. The nonprofit organization moved at the beginning of the year to 2122 S. Spring Ave on the west side of the Southway Center.

Auch and Smith have big plans for the extra space.

“We want to be able to spread out a little bit, to best display our products number one, and, number two, we want to expand more into some gear,” Auch said.

“Our big growth area is we are going to be expanding into maternity clothing and nursing clothing.”

Sioux Falls doesn’t offer a lot of shopping options for pregnant women, Auch said.

“You can find a little bit here and there. We want to be a one-stop shop for maternity wear.”

With the additional room, Elegant Mommy also will carry more car seats and highchairs from Nuna, and more bassinets and cribs from Venice Child. They’ll also have a play area and seating for mothers to nurse their babies.

They new space should be ready by March 2, Auch said.

The two women stepped in to buy Elegant Mommy after owner Shelly Gaddis announced she was planning to close the business she had started almost a decade earlier. They quit their full-time jobs to run the store.

“It’s been a lot of fun,” Auch said. “We made it through the holiday season, and we are excited about the future and the growth. We’ve just had a lot of opportunities to get to know the (parenting) community. With the new space, we hope to give us room for more events and connecting with the community.”

Elegant Mommy is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday.

In addition to the move, Educated Mommy is going through other changes. Gaddis, a founding member of the nonprofit, resigned earlier this week from the board of directors and from her role as community coordinator. The board plans to fill the position, member Kelsi Thomas said. Educated Mommy provides support and education for parenting.