From the Salt Lake Tribune
Pam Scarpelli plugs her mid-valley shop, Plus Size Consignment, as a place to find “clothes for the better than average woman.”
The average American woman, Scarpelli is quick to note, wears a size 14 and weighs about 165.
But you wouldn’t guess that going into most consignment stores. They typically offer size 12 and smaller.
“When I went into consignment stores,” Scarpelli said, “they treated me like I had the swine flu.”
Leaning over her desk in the back corner of the store, she wore a bright-patterned, quilted jacket with her dark hair cropped short.
“I grew big,” Scarpelli said, the look in her dark brown eyes punctuating the point. “I did not grow ugly or stupid or lose my good taste.”
Scarpelli opened the Ivy Place shop, at 4700 South 900 East in Salt Lake County, about 18 months ago. In part, the store is a new iteration of her dedication to catering to better-than-average women like herself. For years, she operated two Greater Salt Lake Women plus-size stores, now defunct.
The new store has become a kind of girlfriends’ closet, where trading, recycling and buying are all options. “I make people happy and it makes me feel good,” Scarpelli said.
Cindy Jones, a consignment shop fan, stopped in for the first time last year. Now she’s sure to visit from time to time to look around and visit with Scarpelli.
“They have such cute clothes at such good prices,” she said. “There’s always something kind of fun.” One time, she bought a leather coat for $20. More recently she picked up a plaid skirt for $6 that was twice as big as she needed and refashioned it into a skirt and vest set.
Variety is plentiful. Night wear ranges from satiny pajamas to fleecy robes. There are racy bustiers, business suits, jeans and silk evening dresses. Wedding gowns can be rented, as can mother-of-the-bride dresses.
There are also accessories, from pashmina scarves to sandals, pumps, handbags and handmade beaded necklaces. Scarpelli also carries handcrafted dinosaur-bone jewelry and beaded art.
But it’s not just the 1X and 3X clothes that makes Scarpelli’s shop special. It’s Scarpelli herself, who is semi-retired after a career in dance, stage production, retailing and probably a few other things.
Raised in Chicago’s Little Italy, she’s known to call out to a store visitor: “Is that another new girlfriend?”
One shopper, a Midvale woman whose husband is out of work, was delighted to walk out of the store with a selection of shirts and sweaters — eight pieces total — that not only fit but cost under $60. She also got supportive commentary from Scarpelli.
“Oh, aren’t you cute?,” said Scarpelli as the woman walked out of the fitting room in a “Delta Burke” denim shirt.
“We have show-and-tells here,” Scarpelli said of the exchange. “This is the fun — talking.”
Andrea Stock, a salon owner, would agree. While affordability in the tough economy is one reason she likes Plus-Size Consignment, she’s also happy to have found a store that offers the right sizes and variety “just for us big girls,” not to mention the value-added outfit-by-outfit consulting.
“And I love that Italian lady,” Stock added. “She’s the first to tell you if it looks good or if it doesn’t.”