Business is booming for Mia Theodoropoulos. Less than two years after she made the shift from hiring dresses out of her own wardrobe to setting up a bricks-and-mortar designer rental boutique, Something Borrowed, in Mount Lawley, the Perth style queen has been run off her feet.

Hundreds of garments are loaned out to some of WA’s most stylish women each week and Theodoropoulos has also started her own label, Something Beyond, which is available exclusively for hire.

But now she is casting her eye further afield with the launch of her first Eastern States boutique in Melbourne’s Richmond shopping district last month.

“When I started out I was receiving emails from all around the country because people are under the impression that I ship but we are Perth-based only, ” Theodoropoulos explained to AAA.

“I was monitoring how many emails I was getting from different States and I would put them in a file. After a few months I had 200 enquiries from Melbourne so I knew there was a gap in the market over there. It is the event capital of Australia.”

Like the Perth boutique, Something Borrowed Melbourne will stock a range of leading designers including Manning Cartell, Carla Zampatti and Lisa Brown.

But Theodoropoulos is also bringing a selection of WA designers with her to the new shop to increase their presence over east.

“We have just done a big order with ae’lkemi, which is exciting because they are dresses that people won’t be able to get anywhere else, ” she said.

Theodoropoulos puts part of her success down to Something Borrowed’s unique one-on-one style consultations, which help women find their perfect red carpet or ball look.

But she said the main drawcard of the boutique was its affordability for fashion savvy folk in the modern age, with the designer dresses ranging from $70-$200 to hire.

“At the moment many people can’t afford to pay thousands of dollars for a dress, ” Theodoropoulos said.

“But it’s not only the money factor — you think ‘Why would I spend that on something I will only wear once?’ I find that this concept has gone really well since I opened because people don’t want to spend a lot of money but they do want to look good.”

Between monthly trips to Melbourne, her main goal for the rest of the year is to strengthen the Perth store, with a large number of new dresses arriving in the next few months. 

 

© The West Australian

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