Julie Perlow-Greene and Mylene Surette-DiMuzio of Retail Therapy (credit Adrianna Donat)
Julie Perlow-Greene is both a clinical psychologist and a personal stylist. She puts her diverse talents together as the owner of Retail Therapy, a store created to help customers find and feed their unique styles. “Fashion can be therapeutic,” says Perlow-Greene, “and it shouldn’t be too serious.”
And the store, nestled between Perch Home and Palmer’s Bakery, is full of whimsy. As you look around the store, you see both vintage and current styles. Retail Therapy’s associate Mylene Surette-DiMuzio exquisitely arranges designer clothing, hats, purses, scarves, funky shoes and statement jewelry throughout the store, which can look like a set from a fashion shoot.
Retail Therapy moved from South Orange to Maplewood Village last spring, and it has become part of the fabric. “There are so many people who are involved in fashion in this area,” says Perlow-Greene. “We have fashion editors, writers and designers in our community who bring us special pieces they kept throughout the years. That means you can find high-end designer clothing here with tags still on them.”
And those tags show reasonable prices. The clothing ranges between $60 for many of the jackets, and $500 for some of the one-of-a-kind designer dresses. A quick look through the racks will turn up names like Vera Wang and St. John. The store carries clothing from size 0 through size 20, so most people will find sizes that work.
If you need more help than a quick trip to Retail Therapy can give you, Perlow-Greene will bring her stylist talents to you, for a closet assessment.
Retail Therapy hosts occasional events, encouraging customers to “come in and get beautiful.” Most recently, they co-hosted an event with Lori Sutherland of Soul Styling NYC to try on vintage coats. “We wanted to help customers try things on from different time periods, step out of their comfort zones, and find clothes they love,” says Perlow-Greene.
Keep your eyes open for more events to come, because, as Perlow-Greene says, “I want to keep the community involved in fashion.”
Retail Therapy
7 Highland Place in Maplewood Village
Hours: 11am-5pm Monday-Friday
10am-6pm Saturday
Closed Sunday
