Modern Nostalgia will open at 95 Allen Street this Friday, the joint effort of Nikki Polasik and Brianne Klejdys-Long. The shop will offer women’s clothing, lingerie, accessories and jewelry that will appeal to women of all ages. Any one of the pieces or dresses Modern Nostalgia carries can be dressed up for a night out or paired with jeans for a casual chic look with a little extra personality. Look for lines like Mary Green, Pur and Adriano Goldschmied, bridge line clothing that suits every wallet.
Along with a host of fun services and events, Nikki and Bri plan to get to know their clientele to the point where they’ll call a customer when a new shipment comes in if they they see a perfect “fit” for someone’s particular style. “I’ll even deliver,” Bri says, “because that’s my dream, right? Someone shows up at the door with an armful of new clothes.” They also want to branch into client styling and closet renovation eventually.
Right now, the girls have played it safe with their first selections; the colors are somewhat muted, the styles classic. “We know we’ll be popping more color in the spring,” Nikki says, “and were going to get in some really fun holiday dresses soon, but for now, we wanted to fill the store with simple things we knew everyone would want.”
The racks are monochrome to a point, but with interesting detail. And then there are the silk-blend patterned sweaters and chunky jewelry, colorful scarves and pretty lingerie that add color and complete that “dressed” look and feel, from the inside out.
Bri brings a retail merchandizing background with training at the Fashion Institute of Technology, and Nikki works as a waitress at Sinatra’s on Kenmore Avenue. The fashion-forward duo are actually third cousins who had fallen out of touch for 10 years, but they’re making up for lost time with this joint business venture and a double they just signed the lease on this week. Listening to them talk and plan, finishing each other’s thoughts and sentences, it’s hard to imagine they ever skipped a beat.
They’re very proud of their dressing rooms “with real doors,” they say in unison. And they got Hank Sontag from Horse Feathers Architectural to outfit a counter for them. Some of the other special antique fittings and fixtures come from Harold’s Curiosity Shoppe, just a few doors down. The space itself is outfitted for both interest and comfort, though it’s anyone’s guess whether they will have chocolate cupcakes on the counter every day, along with their guest book.
Tomorrow night, prior to their Friday 1PM – 10PM opening, Nikki and Bri will host a “Sinatra Girls Pajama Party,” where they and Nikki’s co-workers will warm up the new storefront. It’s a private party that will take advantage of the fact that the paper is still up on the windows, but the signage decals (that Allentown allows) will be in today.
Not to be outdone by Nikki’s co-workers, Bri says, “It was always my dream to be locked in a store overnight with all my friends, so that’s what were doing for my upcoming birthday.” It seems a lot of Bri’s dreams involve clothing and shopping; for the cousins, this little retail storefront on Allen Street between Coulter Bay and Hero is the ultimate realization of those dreams.
Modern Nostalgia
95 Allen Street – Buffalo, NY 14202 – 716.884.4440
Hours: Mon – Fri: 10 – 6, Sat: 10 – 5, Sunday: 12 – 4