High-end boutique makes a name for itself in North Miami

When Lina Perez and Victoria Vasile were thinking of a name for their high-end children's boutique in North Miami they couldn't resist the kid-friendly drink, Chocolate Milk. They also loved the idea of the tongue-in-cheek reference to themselves; Lina's the chocolate and Victoria's the milk.

"Our name makes us unique because children love chocolate milk and once people meet us they get the visual reference," Perez said. "People don't forget the connection. We used to think our sense of style is what made us unique, but it's something that is admired and unfortunately mimicked."

Perez and Vasile have a combined total of more than 30 years of retail experience between them. Perez managed Victoria's Secret stores and Vasile managed Pea in the Pod stores and before that both worked in beauty spas in New York and New Jersey.

Initially the friends thought to open a salon in Miami but quickly realized the market wasn't quite the same. A $75 appointment in New York went for $30 in Miami so they started considering other retail options and decided on a "children's store designed with grown-ups in mind."

Chocolate Milk is a 950-square-foot, high-end store nestled in North Miami, between Bal Harbour and Aventura, that offers everything from white glove delivery and set up to free gift wrapping, complete with little hand-made gift cards.

When you enter the store you can't help but respond to the inviting aroma or the warm welcome from Perez and Vasile, that's likely to turn into a hug once you become a repeat customer.

"Customers love the scents in our store," Perez said. "We carry Antica Farmacista, a home fragrance line found only in Nordstrom. Our mom shoppers love it."

Mom shoppers also love the selection at Chocolate Milk, which has several furniture designers on its floor as well as in catalogs along with upholstered rockers for moms and kids. It uses armoires and hutches as display pieces for clothing, diaper bags, gift items, rugs, bedding, accessories, lighting, bath and body products and more. The top selling categories are layettes, gifts, furniture and clothing, in that order, and Perez and Vasile are looking to add a stroller line this year as well.

"We've become the biggest baby gift store in the neighborhood," Perez said. "Moms love the vibe in our store, and I think they enjoy the fact that we're so friendly. They like that we remember their names and their kids' names. We have a Chocolate Milk baby album, and all of our customer's babies are in it. It's the personal touch that makes us different."

Shoppers will find $80 to $250 diaper bags, $450 to $1,000 chandeliers, $20 to $50 t-shirts as well as the PeePee TeePee for the Sprinkling WeeWee, barrettes, a section of fine children's jewelry and wall décor at Chocolate Milk.

As relatively new storeowners, Perez and Vasile have had a learning curve when it comes to dealing with vendors, competitors and customers in the juvenile industry.

"The competition has gotten tougher but there's nothing we can do other than give our very best customer service, all the time, everyday," Perez said. "It's become a little difficult to compete on price when other retailers are now offering 10-15% discounts to grab the business, and we certainly have a tough time competing with Internet retailers who offer free delivery on the same items we carry."

Perez said she's learned a lot from vendors since opening the store but "it's been a learn-as-you-go situation because vendors have a secret language they won't teach you; you have to figure it out on your own." They're more than willing to answer your questions and help, she said, but you have to know the right questions to ask because most of the time vendors won't volunteer the information otherwise.

She finds it difficult to work with vendors when they try to make you buy everything in their lines so as to have a bigger presence in her store, especially since she has limited space.

"Vendor relationships are similar to our relationships with our customers," Perez said. "They like to know we'll be a repeat customer and obviously we love our repeat customers but vendors have to realize we can't buy everything they sell the same way my customer isn't buying one of everything I sell."

The major challenge, Perez said, is getting vendors to establish territory to help keep the store unique.

"We all shop the same markets and see the same products," she said. "When you get lucky and find something distinctive you might be able to carry it for a very short while before someone else in your area picks it up, too, and then you're back to the drawing board."

Aside from being on the lookout for products everyone else doesn't have, Perez and Vasile have started carrying custom linens designed exclusively for Chocolate Milk by a new designer and friend, Gloria Currlin of Currlin Designs. They're also adding room designing tips to their portfolio and Perez and Vasile plan to stay busy by offering a small custom layette line as well.

Staying on top of trends goes hand-in-hand with setting your store apart — the challenge here is that consumer's tastes and preferences usually lag behind the styles and trends vendors roll out each season. For example, vendors may be big on red this year but Chocolate Milk customers still are looking for the chocolate and blue combos of last year.

"Of course you want your store to reflect the newest and latest trend but you also want your customers to be satisfied and to like your products. Unfortunately, it's hard to be all things to all people, but we are steadily working on it," Perez said.

Pricing has become challenging. "The price of everything has gone up like crazy," Perez said. "For example some of the t-shirts we carry are $22 wholesale. That means I have to charge $45 to $50 and that's ridiculously high when my savvy moms can go to The Gap or Old Navy. It forces me to look for vendors who are less expensive so I can bring the price down even for my more affluent customers."

Their first year out Perez and Vasile spent about 10% of their budget on advertising, which makes sense when you're trying to establish your store and get your name out. In 2006 they cut back to 3–5% and used mostly direct mail and ads in local high-end magazines. The store also was fortunate to be featured three times on local news lifestyle spots and the residual word-of-mouth that followed was a big boost.

In 2006 Chocolate Milk also stayed in touch and in the public eye by giving back to Miami. Perez and Vasile donated a Newport Cottage cradle and its linens to The Children's Museum in Miami Beach; hosted a holiday drive at the store and collected toys, books and CDs for The Miami Children's Hospital; and they donated two Luxe Baby velvet robes for auction to Sylvester Miami Hospital for Cancer Research.

For 2007 they're working on a few new traffic-building ideas. Before Easter and Passover, they hope to host Tea at 4 to introduce tea dresses, a new item for the store. They'll serve tea and treats for the moms and entertain the kids with — what else — chocolate milk and cookies while moms shop. They're also looking to host sales events on days that recognize causes such as World AIDS Day.

"Originally we also wanted to do a story time in the afternoons but that will have to wait until our staff grows," Perez said. "We try to think outside the box when it comes to the store. This year, for example, our holiday windows had a Chrismaka theme — that's not something you see everywhere, but we got great compliments on our windows."

Perez said she and Vasile know when they've hit on a good idea for the business when it's midnight and they're still working on it.

The bad ideas they look upon as growing pains and try to learn from their mistakes.

"When you first start out you tend to put all of your finances with an accountant, you're legal issues with an attorney and you just take your vendors at face value," Perez said. "So far we've replaced our accountant, we're working on replacing our attorney and we certainly ask a lot more questions of our vendors. You constantly have to tweak the business as you grow and above all have a good time doing it all."

Chocolate Milk takes something as simple as a clothes line and turns it into a fun display. Though it competes with retailers like Old Navy and The Gap, layettes are one of the top-selling categories for this high-end boutique.

Furniture from rockers and cribs to twin beds and more are available and Perez and Vasile now are also offering design services to help busy moms.

Modern looks from Nurseryworks hit the mark with North Miami shoppers. Perez and Vasile also carry Angela Adams rugs and Slip lighting to round out the contemporary selections.

Hutches and consoles serve as display pieces as well as being for sale. Moms can pick up bath and body lotions for baby and inviting home fragrances for themselves.