Felicia Jimenez began amassing a huge collection of vintage clothing and accessories at a very young age. Then a few years ago, she ran out of storage space for her findsā and realized she couldn’t possibly wear them all herself.
So in October 2011 she opened Royal Factory Atelier at 1209 N. High St. in the Short North and stocked it with pieces from her collection, as well as new pieces.
About 70 percent of the shop’s merchandise is womenswear that is either vintage or new. The remaining 30 percent is menswear that is almost exclusively vintage.
“We’re all defined by our life experiences, both old and new,” said Jimenez. “For personal style to be truly original, it has to be a mix of old and new. This has always been my style philosophy.”
In addition to clothing, Royal Factory carries shoes, bags, jewelry, and all kinds of accessoriesāĀ from sunglasses and belts to tights and hats.
“Our clothes are as unique as the people who shop here,” she said. “Classy. Edgy. Sweet. It’s hard to nail down our merchandise, as it is completely eclectic and our selection changes constantly.”
Additionally, Jimenez has made an effort to carry pieces by Columbus designers; right now, the shop has neutral tops and bottoms by Dirty Laser and jewelry by Brittany B.
Royal Factory also regularly teams with Columbus College of Art & Design on “Project Runway” type challenges where the shop gives fashion design students vintage pieces that they are tasked with reconstructing. The results of the latest challenge ācocktail dresses by 16 studentsāĀ are currently available for purchase at the shop.
“It has always been part of our mission to provide a platform for young and emerging talent in the community,” Jimenez said.
Walk by the display windows of the 2,000-square-foot shop and it’s likely something will catch your eye. Perhaps that’s not surprising considering Jimenez spent eight years working in visual merchandising and creative concepting for Victoria’s Secret.
“Being a vintage store presents certain challenges when conceptualizing,” she said. “Merchandising can be tricky because we don’t have multiples of the same items. I am constantly struck with inspiration from different sources and work hard to keep the store feeling fresh and new.”
