Grace Meets The Professor.  Grace is just wrapping up a new purchase when she hears, "Hi Grace, I was just driving to the college and thought I'd stop by and see how things are going with the students' fashions and see for myself what the shop looks like.  I know some of the students have been in to say hello and bring in their creations.  They're very excited to have their fashions shown publicly and you're doing a great service to the college and my Fashion Design Department."   Grace does a double take, never expecting to see such a handsome professor.  In fact, they both find themselves staring at one another before a customer breaks the silence with, "Is my package ready, I've got to get to an appointment."  Grace quickly finishes up the sale.  As it happens, she has two of the students' designs in the shop window.

"Well come on over and have a look," says Grace as she leads the department chairman over to the shop window.  "I can say I'm very pleased with the designs and workmanship of your students and I think their fashions are a nice enhancement to what we're doing here."

New Energy In The Shop.  Grace has added a mural and hat rack to right side of the shop.  Business is up and Grace feels new energy in the shop.  Here, some customers are looking at the bags and trying on shoes.

The Shop Has Taken On A New Look.  This is how the dress shop is looking after a few weeks of painting and setting up the new merchandise.  Grace, who has had no time for anything else,  looks around the shop and exhales with relief and pleasure at how things are going.

Grace Receives A Phone Call From The College.  Grace has received a call from the local college, the Chairman of the Fashion Design Department, who asks Grace to consider displaying and selling some of the fashions and accessories that the students produce.  He tells her she would pick and choose the items she thinks would be good sellers for her shop, and she would take most of the profit for sales.  Grace thinks about the proposition and decides it's a good project.  Partnering with the local college to promote their Fashion Department promotes her shop as well in the community.  Here, one of the students stops by the shop to introduce herself and see what the shop looks like so they will have some idea the kinds of fashions Grace might want.

 A Shop That Serves Coffee Has To Be Classy.
Grace has always had a table set up in the front of the shop with coffee for the shop patrons, along with a vase of flowers next to it.  She follows her mother in this custom.  Even though the merchandise has changed, Grace refuses to give up this longstanding custom.  One of the students told her that serving free coffee is a great draw to get the students into the shop.  On the right side of the shop, pictured here, is the shoe section.

A Welcome Change.  

Grace has put ads in the community newspaper and the local college paper showing some of her new merchandise.  She is getting new customers coming in, especially from the college.  Sandy, in green, is Grace's young saleswoman, who is delighted with the change.  She loves the new look to the shop.

  

Opening Chapter.
 This is the Constance Taylor Dress Shop, opened in the 1950's by Constance Taylor.  Her daughter Grace, in the black outfit, took the shop over from her mother when Constance retired.  Grace has had the shop now for many years.  She's forty-five years old, never married, and some say it's because she never got over the loss of her high school boyfriend, a star football player.  They had gone together since elementary school days and were hardly ever seen apart.  Right before high school graduation, they split up.  Grace went away for the summer and her boyfriend went into the service.  Grace came back three months later, with just enough time to get her belongings together to take to State College.  She has dated off and on, but never anything serious.   She loves having the shop and outside of work, has a lot of friends that she sees and also takes a painting class at the local college.
The shop, like many other retail businesses, almost closed its doors because of the suffering economy.  Grace would do anything to save the shop and hired a consulting team of two young women to see what changes she might make to save her shop.   The consultants spent a few days researching her area and came back to
Grace and said because of the changing nature of the community around the shop, she might consider changing her merchandise from high end to mod, vintage and handmade clothing and accessories.   Grace painfully made the changes and business began picking up, especially with the nearby college student population.  Pictured are Grace, her dog who keeps her company in the shop, and two of her friends who have come to see the changes in the shop.  They tell her they think it's a great idea and the new look is a welcome change.