With $250, woman builds renowned dress shop

After 45 years in business, some might think boutique owner Pat Chauvin would be considering retirement.

It’s not likely.

The owner of Pat’s of Chauvin has a passion for outfitting women, a love she doesn’t envision hanging up anytime soon.

“Retirement is not in my vocabulary,” she said. “I love doing what I am doing. I cannot see myself sitting at home not doing anything.”

Besides, Pat’s of Chauvin is a family affair. Pat Chauvin’s husband, Philip, keeps the books and daughter, Phyllis, runs the shop’s baby and school uniform sections.

“Without the help of my husband, my daughter and my staff, I don’t think I would be as successful as I am. It takes more than one person to run a business,” she said.

For 45 years, Chauvin has remained true to her mission: Providing customers a pleasant shopping experience.

“Whether they come in and try on 20 outfits and leave with one, I just want them to have the best experience possible,” she said.

At the clothing shop, ladies from Lafourche to St. Mary parishes have their pick of any style, from casual sportswear to formal.

“We think we can outfit everyone from a baby to a great-grandmother,” Chauvin said.

Every three months, she goes to market to find new styles. On occasion, she has even shopped personally for some of her customers. “At the store, we are in a position to help people, so that’s what we do,” she said.

The store has a reputation for its mother-of-the-bride dress suits and prom dresses. At any given time, there are more than 1,000 dresses hanging. She also carries handbags and jewelry, but no footwear.

The selection of male attire is limited. Chauvin only dabbles in a little casual clothing for men. Suits and other fashions for men have to be purchased elsewhere.

Her most recent addition to the shop is an abundance of school uniforms, which takes up at least one-third of the store.

“A lot of stores just carry uniforms during the beginning of the year. But we decided to carry them all year because you never know when a child might need a new pair of slacks or shirt,” Chauvin said.

Items not in stock can be ordered, she said. The vast uniform selection ranges from sizes 2 to 64.

In 1963, when Pat’s of Chauvin first got its start, typically, women were employed as nurses or schoolteachers. More commonly, women stayed home and raised families.

But as far back as she can remember, Pat Chauvin had aspirations of owning a dress shop.

“Once I got married and started having children, I forgot about my dreams,” she said. “Then, the opportunity came I knew that I had to go to work. My husband suggested that I open a dress shop like I always wanted.”

The store first opened with $600 worth of wholesale clothing.

With her husband’s support, Chauvin traveled to a New Orleans wholesale market, her first, with only $250 in her purse. She returned home with nearly $600 worth of merchandise to sell.

Unfortunately, Chauvin had two problems – nowhere to store the items and no customers.

Solving her storage dilemma was easy. All she and Philip had to do was bunk the children in one room, then place iron rods around the empty bedroom to hang the dresses.

Finding a solution to problem two – clients – was not as simple. Chauvin said she had to convince her friends and family to buy something.

“They said, ‘Are you crazy?’ And I said, ‘Probably so, but will you support me?'” Chauvin recalled.

In the end, those closest to Chauvin became her first loyal customers.

For several years, Chauvin sold dresses out of her home until she was able to buy a small building in the community of Chauvin.

By 1965, Pat’s of Chauvin was thriving. With a portion of the profits, Chauvin was able to build her very own store. For 20 years, it was the home of Pat’s of Chauvin.

In 1985, however, Hurricane Juan came through and flooded the dress shop. Fortunately, Chauvin had expanded her business to include a baby store. After the main clothing store flooded, Chauvin relocated all her operations to the baby store.

Ironically, it was another storm – two, actually, hurricanes Gustav and Ike – this September that closed the shop for four weeks. The dress shop sustained only minor damage.

“I am so excited to come back to work because I love my job,” she said. “I love working every day and I enjoy seeing my customers.”

Some of the areas hardest hit by the 2008 storms were in southern Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes. A number of residents lost personal items, including clothing.

Although Chauvin and her staff were recovering from their own storm damage, they began a clothing drive for school-aged youngsters affected by the hurricanes.

“As a result of the storms, we started working with the local schools to get uniforms to needy kids at a discounted rate so that they could get back to school as soon as possible,” she said.

Pat’s staffers have been visiting various schools upon request and fitting children in need of new uniforms. The clothing is then sized and delivered to the schools, Chauvin explained.

Chauvin also hosts fashion shows to benefit Tri-parish organizations. Most recently, Pat’s of Chauvin presented a fashion extravaganza for the Lockport Museum.

In addition, she gives motivational speeches at local high schools, emphasizing that anything is possible with hard work and determination.

Pat Chauvin, owner of Pat’s of Chauvin, helps customer Lorraine Folse find an ensemble for a fall outing. The clothing boutique is celebrating 45 years in business this year. * Photo by SOPHIA RUFFIN