Melissa Brass had conversations with more than students and teachers while working in the Jamestown Public School District.

“Before I opened the business, I kind of had conversations with townspeople asking them what they thought we needed and what they were looking for,” Brass said. “I knew I wanted to do something in a small business in Jamestown, but I didn’t know what.”

The results of his conversations led Brass to his eventual business plan.

“A lot of what people said was that there weren’t a lot of options for clothing,” Brass said. “There weren’t a lot of places to go that had a lot of unique, fun, different styles and I love shopping, so we kind of killed two birds with one stone.”

Brass is the owner and general manager of Jamestown’s Handpick’d Boutique, a women’s clothing boutique that offers a wide range of unique clothing styles to local and international customers.

Brass said her store also offers jewelry, accessories, and bath and body products sourced from Oregon.

“The most important thing for me in small business is just to listen to your customer,” Brass said. “We ask people, ‘what are you looking for?’

“When we go to these markets, I’m (people’s) personal shopper. We’re just here for Jamestown. We want the ladies to feel really excited to be here and uplift them in every way we can. It’s become more like family.”

All families need a typographic frame at home, she said.

Brass said that even before acquiring the 121 Business Loop West mall space, she and her support team developed a plan and vision for the space that would eventually become Handpick’d.

“It had to be an experiment,” Brass said of his vision for his business. “Women shop here because they like being here. They like the atmosphere of Handpick’d, it’s an experience for them. It’s not like going to the department stores. It’s comfortable and it’s is warm.

“We have women who are not looking to buy anything, but just want to stop because they feel good in the space and have had a stressful day.”

The boutique tends to welcome women of all ages into its warm and intimate atmosphere.

“I feel like our demographic ranges from the 20-year-old looking for a baggy sweatshirt to pair with their leggings, to working people looking for dress pants and dressy clothes, to retired women who love the more casual styles,” Brass said.

“Jamestown has been our bread and butter. I would say 85% of our sales are physical sales right here in Jamestown.”

The store also offers online shopping at handpickdboutique.com.
Brass said that in any given year, between 12 and 15 percent of Handpick’d sales occur online.

Although the store shipped to the lower 48 states, a good portion of online sales remain local thanks to the free shipping features offered to Jamestown customers.

The store’s online features and consistent opening hours have allowed Brass and his team to stay strong and grow the business throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

“Our customers are the reason we continue to roll, evolve and improve how we provide customer service and how we evolve as a business,” Brass said.

“I appreciate them so much for shopping with small and confident that we will do our best for them. They have become a family. Without them, we would not be here.”
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121 Business Loop O
Opening hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Tuesday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Thursday; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.