Owner Adrianne Rogers bags customer, Samantha Shumate’s purchases.
Flashback to nearly three years ago whenever the only stores in Murray that catered to women’s clothes were JCPenney or Maurice’s.
Bored with only having those two stores nearby, Adrianne Rogers took it upon herself to provide students and community members with a new place to spend their hard-earned money, and with that she brought a trendy, new flair to Murray.
Gate 28 was Murray’s first boutique that focused its sights on selling clothing for the college-aged demographic.
With such a unique name, the story behind Gate 28’s name is just as unique itself.
“My husband came up with the name but we both have our own versions of it,” Rogers said. “He says a gate kind of leads you to a new direction or a new path in life and I was 28 years old when I opened the store.”
To Rogers the name symbolizes coming home. Before moving back to Murray permanently after moving to Raleigh, N.C., the couple always flew into Gate 28C at the Nashville International Airport.
The tag line of the store describes the clothing sold in the store as “vintage inspired meets country chic” but Rogers said the clothing is not limited to only those styles. Everything from country chic to contemporary trends can be found within the growing store.
“We truly do try to be unique so that we can really stand out amongst the crowd,” she said.
A new venture Gate 28 has recently taken on is adding a selection of men’s clothing to the mix.
While men in Murray already have an outlet for obtaining dressier clothes, Rogers wanted to be able to fill another void by offering men a place to shop for a more casual style of clothes.
The all-new men’s section of the store offers men everything from casual T-shirts and polos to denim and button-ups. Gate 28 also prides itself on being the first boutique in Murray to offer both men’s and women’s clothing.
“We had so many women coming into shop and telling us how awesome it would be if we had something for their husband or son or boyfriend and they could just grab it while they were here and make it seem like a one-stop shop kind of store,” Rogers said.
Another way Gate 28 stays on top of the latest trends is through social media. The store has an active Facebook account, Pinterest account and Instagram that it uses to advertise specific sales of the day, and also shows customers exactly what the store has to offer.
“We love social media,” she said. “What better way to connect our product and our store and our image with people of all ages, genders, races? It’s just a really good way to market our product to all these different people at the exact same time.”
While trends are constantly evolving, keeping up with them could be seen as a challenge for some store owners, but not for Rogers. Chevron is a trend, Rogers said, that is an excellent example.
For close to two years, keeping chevron on the shelves in the store was nearly impossible, but now that the trend is starting to slow down, designers are finding new ways to keep the pattern fresh.
The upcoming trends for spring are what the store is focusing on right now.
“For spring, you’re going to be looking at printed leggings, like fall and winter, only they’re going to be in bright and bold colors like hot pink and yellow,” she said. “A lot more of the solid tunics with the Aztec printed accents also. Maxi skirts will also be making a big comeback.”
While the store has additions every year it has been open, the competition has grown as well. With more and more stores opening in town, Gate 28 still prides itself on being the first.
Rogers said: “We definitely are learning as we go, and there are a lot of boutiques opening in the area so that shows a lot of demand for the product, but we want people walking around Murray wearing our product.”
Story by Breanna Sill, Assistant Features Editor