Kevin A. Roberts
Rungolee’s colorfully patterned blouses, dresses, and skirts stand out against the blush walls and creamy, pearlized floor of the brand’s new shop at 9807 Clayton, formerly occupied by longtime antiques dealer Jules L. Pass. “I wanted to give the richness of the textiles a chance to pop,” says Rungolee owner Anjali Kamra.
The storefront opened this month, a remarkable feat as other small businesses struggled to maintain a brick-and-mortar presence through the pandemic. Previously, the brand’s sales originated mostly from trunk shows in private homes and country clubs around the country. When pandemic restrictions brought those to a standstill, Kamra pivoted to e-commerce to promote and sell her designs. Sales were so strong—the holiday season that year was one of her most successful—that orders filled her in-home studio and spilled into other rooms of her Ladue home. Now, Kamra says, nearly 90 percent of sales are generated online, but she says she began to miss meeting and talking with her devoted and loyal clientele.
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Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
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Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
“I built my brand on one-on-one interactions,” she says. “I love that look on [a customer’s] face when they find the perfect piece—it brings me a lot of joy—so, I thought, when we were looking for a space, rather than just taking a larger, probably cheaper warehouse space, can we create something that is beautiful, that is kind of like a hybrid space?”
The new, 1,200-square-foot store is that and more, with retail concentrated in the front and design, fulfillment, and storage set up in the back. The open space allows customers a look into the process of designing the clothes, to watch as Kamra’s employees iron and package goods, or the group brainstorms new collections. Kamra also plans to host popup events featuring small-batch brands that she’s discovered on her travels.
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Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
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Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Kamra designed the shop—with input from her team—as an aesthetic extension of her own home: bathed in color, swathed in rich fabrics, and high on style. Coffee will always be served, she says, and art, including a work purchased for the shop titled “Lisa” by contemporary artist Hassan Hajaj, adorns the space. Locally owned Theiss Plating custom-made the gold-tone hanging racks attached to the exposed ceiling, and Kamra color-matched the company’s signature hot pink—seen on all its gift boxes—for the walls of the restroom. A showstopping chandelier, also in golden tones from Centro, called "Flock of Light," makes a statement from the moment clients walk in. “Four months we waited for this thing, but it’s so beautiful and really just makes the space glow,” Kamra says.
Everything has taken longer than expected, but that just comes with opening a store during a pandemic. The team also dealt with production delays in Mumbai, India, where the company’s manufacturing is headquartered. To help distribute the risk of a COVID-19 flareup, which closed the atelier once last year, Kamra decided to establish another production facility in Kolkata, her hometown.
“It’s uncharted territory, but I’m confident,” she says of the new retail venture. “Over the 13 years we’ve been in business, I’ve learned about what works, what doesn’t work, what looks good on different people and different body types and different coloring,” says Kamra. “I keep thinking about those interactions, and it helps me when I design. I like to keep my customers in mind.”
For an exclusive look inside Kamra's home, click here.
