By Roxy Rowton
“Fashion is global, but the Tiny House of Fashion is mobile,” says Danelle Johnson, boutique owner of Virginia’s first tiny house of mobile fashion. While the term “mobile fashion on wheels” may conjure up images of bygone days when street peddlers hawked their goods and products from carts and wagons, Ms. Johnson is an object lesson in the reinvention of mobile retail by a new batch of fashion entrepreneurs. These enterprising merchants are trading in the traditional brick and mortar retail space for fashion-forward mobile storefronts.
The tiny home phenomenon is a growing movement for a more sustainable lifestyle. Home designers and builders have created remarkable well-equipped miniature houses for living on a smaller scale to new dimensions. Johnson’s “tiny house of fashion” came to her during a dream. She was familiar with the unconventional concept of converting a vehicle (truck, van, or bus) into a mobile retail space on wheels. But Johnson dreamed of a beautiful space that could be as comfortable and relaxed as shopping from home. If society and culture were yearning for homes on a smaller scale, why not leverage the tiny house phenomenon and build a true miniature, mobile fashion boutique for an unparalleled shopping experience.
As a young girl, Johnson would come home from school and select the next day’s outfit. To ensure her outfit looked nothing like her classmates, she would cut, sew, dye, glue, or paint her garments into original fashion creations. For her custom fashions, she was awarded “Best Dressed” of her eighth grade class. From that time, Johnson knew what she wanted to do. “Fashion is what I’m going to do, fashion is going to be a part of me.” She earned a Bachelor’s from Old Dominion University and then pursued fashion design at the prestigious Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in California. Johnson remained in Los Angeles working in the local fashion industry for several years before returning to Virginia to launch her fashion and mobile business — Tiny House of Fashion.
The Tiny House of Fashion is no ordinary fashion boutique on wheels. Johnson has figured out some innovative designs to make her tiny fashion boutique into a well-equipped retail space — and chic too! The Tiny House of Fashion has floor to ceiling glass windows cut into the front exterior for a spacious, airy ambience. The retail space accommodates a changing room for trying on garments. Conveniently arranged next to the changing room is a full-length mirror for seeing just how well garments fit and flatter. A plush-covered bench does double duty as a comfy spot for shoppers to sit and chat with Johnson about their fashion specifications, as well as to provide storage for additional inventory. The one-of-a-kind fashions hang attractively from garment racks attached to the interior walls making garments easily accessible for shoppers. The Tiny House of Fashion may be fashion and shopping on a compact scale, but it certainly makes up for its proportions by the offering of exclusive, one-of-a-kind fashions delivered with the utmost personalized attention.
Johnson recognizes that her tiny house of fashion on wheels is unconventional and not a stereotypical shopping destination. She likes that “the Tiny House of Fashion is different from a brick-and-mortar retail or that it is not a vehicle converted into mobile retail, but it is a miniature fashion boutique on wheels.” Her hand-picked designs offer fashionistas and pragmatists exclusivity and one-of-a-kind garments, they can’t find anywhere else. Because overhead and inventory are comparatively lower than a traditional retail space, Johnson can offer unique fashion-forward designs at affordable prices. The Tiny House of Fashion can go places for private parties, girls night out, luncheons and festivals to bring a new scale of posh, mobility and vogue to retail.
The Tiny House of Fashion’s Grand Opening Celebration will take place June 25 from 6:00 to 9:00 p. m. at Babylon in Woodbridge. The Grand Opening celebratory affair will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony and fashion show. Guests may view and shop the Tiny House of Fashion during the grand opening. For more information about the Tiny House of Fashion such as locations, hours of operation and private parties, visit tinyhouseoffashion.com
Tiny House of Fashion: 202-670-3522 tinyhouseoffashion.com
