Two One Two

Nicole Sjostedt

(212) in the (604) is how the creators/owners of (212) Women’s Boutique describe their stylish sanctuary. Anthony Castro from the (212) area of New York City and Scott Walhovd originally from Whistler, British Columbia and now in the (604) area of Vancouver opened the doors to their refreshing boutique just six months ago in Vancouver’s trendy  Gastown. Their boutique features casual, everyday clothing with chic under-tones and stocks labels by Line out of Toronto, Dee T-shirts from Los Angeles, Nylon from Montreal, (212)’s in house brand, and many more. “We’re into layering and like to keep it for the most part simple but stylish. We’re not an everything and the kitchen sink kind of store,” says Anthony.

What they are is geared up and ready to expand into wholesale for their (212) line of clothing as well as adding menswear to their sophisticated mix of women’s labels in the store. They are definitely on the same page with each other as to how they want the boutique and clothing line to work for their customer. Both have backgrounds in fashion — Anthony has a BFA in design from Parsons The New School of Design and Scott comes from a modeling background — so they know a thing or two about image. “ We do all the merchandising for the store ourselves; we find that we get a lot of customers asking for the entire outfit that we dress our mannequins in,” Anthony says. “It’s extremely important to have the clothes we sell represented in the right way as in this industry, image is everything” stresses Scott.

They also know that while a Manhattan girl may have no qualms about spending the rent on a jacket, a Vancouver girl isn’t so keen. “Everything in our store is under $250” says Scott “It’s affordable dressing because you get sick of clothes; you want a change every now and then” Anthony exclaims. With their practical approach to retail and sleek sense of design these two extremely stylish and business-savvy individuals make for one fabulous boutique!

(212) Women’s Boutique, 454 W. Cordova St., Vancouver (604) 685 2426 www.twoonetwo.net .