Just a few days before the start of the semester, Thayer Street said goodbye to another familiar face.
But this time it's a change for the better for Marsha Taylor, owner of vintage clothing store Foreign Affair.
About two weeks ago, while much of the student body was packing for Brown, Foreign Affair was making a swift and almost silent move from the lively Thayer Street to the much more serene Brook Street. Foreign Affair now finds itself closer to Wickenden Street, but just far enough that it offers shoppers a quiet haven from the noise and the hubbub.
The newly renovated space was a much welcomed change for Taylor. Not only was the rent on Thayer Street becoming expensive, Taylor said, but the environment did not suit the store either. She referred specifically to the addition of the Better Burger Company.
"It's not a pleasing combination to have clothing next to food, due to the food smells," Taylor said.
Taylor now has more space for less rent. As a result, the new location features huge display windows, two fitting rooms and a bigger inventory, which allows for more diversification, Taylor said. The store now carries a myriad of items — ranging from women's floral tops to men's dress jackets — that put much of today's department store bargains to shame. What's more, there is no need to deal with the daily traffic and parking difficulties around Thayer, added store manager Xavier Valentine.
Business has been wonderful since the move, Taylor said. Though she was initially hesitant about moving away from populous Thayer Street, Taylor said that the store has been attracting a regular clientele despite few publicity efforts. This was perhaps partly due to the loyal customer base Foreign Affair began to establish when it first opened, she added.
Though she did not publicize the move, Taylor believes that word of mouth helped inform shoppers of the new location.
The Brook Street location has also led to a change in the percentage of student customers. While students made up almost 95 percent of clients on Thayer Street, the percentage is now more balanced between Brown students and other residents in the area, estimates Valentine.
Taylor developed the idea for Foreign Affair while working at a vintage store she opened with her sister in Boston. One day, a group of people from the Netherlands approached Taylor. "There was a number of them, and they wanted to bring European fashion — vintage — to the United States. They asked if I would be interested in selling, and I said ‘Oh, absolutely,' " said Taylor.
That event led to the 1986 opening of Foreign Affair in Newport, R.I. The store's name refers to the fact that the store sold mostly European vintage clothing imported from Amsterdam. In 1991, Taylor expanded her store to a 10,000-square-foot warehouse in the Federal Hill area. Then, in 1994, she settled on 219 Thayer Street, where the store stood until just two weeks ago.
"I wonder why I didn't do it sooner," Taylor said of the move.
