Lana’s Couture opens new location on Kalamazoo Mall

Lana’s Couture is no stranger to downtown Kalamazoo. The shop has been inside Mall Plaza since 2008, but now it’s stepping out onto the mall itself with a move to the spot between Terrapin and Cake’s Boutique.

The 1,000-square-foot store at 245 S. Kalamazoo Mall has five employees, says owner Lana Hawkins.

Hawkins, a former elementary school teacher, who points out she’s also a jazz singer, has four women’s boutiques including the one on the Kalamazoo Mall.

Her retail success started with a store near WMU’s campus in 2004, opened to fill what she saw as a need for a unique women’s apparel store with affordable prices. From there, she went on to open the shop downtown, two in Saugatuck and one in St. Joseph.

When she made her initial move to downtown it was to build clientelle from business women and get downtown traffic to augment that from college students. “Now we draw from all ages,” Hawkins says.

Lana’s Couture on the mall features designer denim, contemporary and missy fashions, shoes and accessories, Hawkins says. True Religion, Citizens of Humanity, Not Your Daughter’s Jeans, Insight, Tribal, Capezio, Hazel, Miss Me are among the brands it offers.

What has she learned about what women of the area like when it comes to shopping?

“They love the perfect pair of denim,” Hawkins says. “That’s why we have such a wide variety. We can fit all body types. And what we have is unique so a woman is not going to see herself coming and going.”

Writer: Kathy Jennings, Second Wave Media
Source: Lana Hawkins, Lana’s Couture