A wide range of Houstonians, from established retail names to young up-and-comers, joined owner Julie Roberts to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Elizabeth Anthony Esther Wolf boutique Wednesday night.
"You all look so gorgeous. I know where you shop," Roberts laughingly told the large crowd that gathered at the store in Uptown Park.
Roberts, a former pageant consultant, started the Elizabeth Anthony collection out of her home in 1987 as a single mother. She came up with the name by combining the middle names of her two children, Jennifer Elizabeth Roberts and Justin Anthony Makris. (Both children, now adults, attended the party.)
"You all look so gorgeous. I know where you shop," Roberts laughingly told the large crowd that gathered at the store in Uptown Park.
In 2003, Roberts bought Esther Wolf, the venerable Houston boutique that has dressed River Oaks women since opening in 1962, from owner Fred McCann and merged the two operations. The two-level store carries a wide range of designer wear from such labels as Marchesa, Georges Chakra, Fotini, Escada, Bill Blass, and Rena Lange.
As photos and newspapers advertisements from the past half-century flashed on one wall, guests sipped champagne and sampled tiny bites from A Fare Extraordinare and reminisced about the store's long history.
Longtime Houston retailer Harriet Hart, who now hosts trunk shows at Roberts' store, recalled how the original Esther Wolf often offered commentary at Junior League style shows in the late 1970s. At the party, Hart sported tennis shoes, because she's recovering from an ankle injury, and a large eye-catching necklace.
"The thing about jewelry is you want people to see you coming," she said.
The highlight of the evening was a runway show, produced by Jeanne Ruberti, featuring 30 looks from the Rena Lange resort and spring 2013 collections, plus a selection of 10 attention-getting evening gowns from the store that had the crowd applauding. Each model had a fresh hairstyle pulled back into a ponytail, courtesy of Cerón.
Joining in the festivities were Roseann Rogers and Sharron Melton, who co-hosted the evening, Annie Cater, Ellen Penner, Bill Caudell, Merele Yarborough, Rena Lange director of sales James Fletcher, Barbara Henson, Todd Ramos, Lenny Matuszewski, Nancy Levicki, Bobbie Nau and former Sakowitz and Esther Wolf CEO Joel Sachs.
Roberts also introduced two important men in her life, her husband Gary Roberts, and her banker, Mitchell Schulmann, who gave her her first loan in 1999. And she offered some words of wisdom based on her retail experience.
"Do the right thing, do it with character and follow your dreams," she said.
