Sep 2, 2010

A hidden retail treasure in St. Paul if shoppers are willing to hunt it downBy Allison KaplanTwinCities.com

St. Paul, MN – Operating a boutique on a busy corner is difficult enough, but down an alley, without any street visibility? That’s retail suicide. Or European.

Allee Metro Chic opens today in an old caretaker’s house behind the buildings on the northwestern corner of Selby and Snelling avenues in St. Paul. You can’t see it from the street, but the boutique began attracting attention weeks ago, just from its sign above a charming cobblestone alley. Once a dingy stretch between boarded-up buildings riddled with graffiti, the walkway was completely remade to resemble a candlelit alley in Paris. Even the shop signs are French.

“People have been coming down the alley nonstop — they’re so curious,” said Jessica Gerard, whose lingerie boutique, Flirt, overlooks the alley. “It really feels like France.”

June Berkowitz, the owner of Nina’s Cafe at Selby and Western avenues, had the vision. She first discovered the turn-of-the-century caretaker’s house down the alley when she was looking for a place to live. She couldn’t get it out of her mind. So when she and daughter Kelissa Stempski decided to open a women’s clothing store, they gravitated to the alley. The area was made even more appealing by the recent arrival of more than a half-dozen independent stores, anchored by popular gift retailer Patina.

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