“I used to live in New York,” says Linda Greene, a faithful Liana shopper and former New Yorker who now lives in Ann Arbor and Vail. “Now I come in from Michigan twice a year and, among other things, I shop at Liana to update my wardrobe. That way I don’t have to shop at what I call the B’s – Bloomingdales, Bergdorfs, Barneys. Liana’s taste is exquisite and matches my style, which is fashionable but classic. And I like the value. I have a collection of cashmere sweaters I’ve bought over a ten-year period and they’d cost twice as much in Vail or Ann Arbor.”
There are a great many women who are fanatically devoted to Liana, the store, and Liana, the woman, who treats every customer as though she is a friend.
“Liana has been my favorite store for years,” says Marnie Mueller, who lives in the neighborhood. “Going there is like having a personal shopper. The selection of clothes has been honed down to what’s au courrant and at the same time, classic. Everything that I’ve purchased there holds up and continues to receive compliments. I count on them to ‘put me together’ when I go on a book tour or for special occasions. My husband invariably goes to them for help selecting birthday presents for me.”
“She’s a great editor,” says Lorrie Bodger. “She puts her collection together in a coherent way so that when you find a perfect skirt or pair of pants or a suit, you’re also going to find the pieces that finish the outfit. And you’re never going to look like everyone else because Liana herself spends lots of time to find you the look you’re going to be happy with. I have Liana clothes that I’ve been wearing for a decade or two!”
The family-run store was launched 29 years ago by two sisters, Liana’s Aunt, Hyunsook Lee Kim, and her mother, Eunsook Pai. Both women had full-time administrative jobs but, as Lee told me, “We always wanted to do something together. “
The idea for the store came somewhat by accident. Lee walked into an East Side dress shop wearing a linen jacket she had hand-sewn from a basic pattern. The owner of the store loved it and asked if she could make five jackets. They flew out of the store. Ultimately Lee laboriously cut and sewed 37 jackets before it occurred to her that maybe retailing was in her future. She worked at the store she sold jackets to for a year, to see if she was cut out (no pun intended) for the business. After deciding that it suited her personality, she gave up her job and, with her sister, found a tiny space of 450 square feet in their present location. Over the years, they’ve gradually expanded.
In the early 1980s, Columbus Avenue was a wildly popular shopping district. The street was thronged, especially on the weekends. The sisters didn’t take a day off for many months. Mostly they catered to women ranging from their 20s to their 40s. Now, says Lee, those women, some in their 60s, are our loyal customers, and so are their daughters. “We’ve grown up together. “
Liana specializes in three areas: sophisticated, classic clothes for working women, lots of separates for weekend wear, and special occasion outfits. It also stocks an assortment of jewelry, scarves, belts and bags. Jackets range from $200 to $400; slacks from $150 to $250 and dresses from $150 to $400. Lee is the buyer; her sister oversees the management of the store.
Lee is adamant about providing good value for the merchandise. I can attest to that fact because, inevitably, I couldn’t resist a wonderful plum-colored cashmere sweater dress which cost much less than one I’d seen at one of the B’s.
There are tons of black clothes that are smart and contemporary, not boring. As Bodger notes, “Liana understands black like no one else, and in a city where we all wear black all the time, that’s no small matter. “
You will find familiar designer names – Tahari, Theory, Vince, Nanette Lepore, Nicole Miller – but what truly distinguishes Liana from other boutiques is its low-key personal service. As Mueller puts it, “They make you feel like family when you enter.”
Liana Pai, formerly an actress, joined the business after a traumatic medical event that changed her life. While pregnant with her first child she developed what New York Magazine called “A Heart Stopping Pregnancy.” Heart-valve surgeries are almost never performed on pregnant women for fear of damaging the fetus but a galloping infection was destroying two of Liana’s heart valves. They had to be replaced during her sixth month of pregnancy. Miraculously, both mother and child did beautifully and Liana is now the mother of two girls, ages 5 and 7.
“I always loved working at the store when I was in high school, and after my illness I decided to refocus my life on family,” says Liana, looking cool and elegant, as she always does, in a pixie haircut, black dress and boots. Now she is not only a partner but the family member who will carry the store forward when her aunt and mother decide to retire.
“It’s a real community,” says Liana. “We have a relationship with our customers and their kids. We not only understand the person and their lifestyle but their body type. Our priority is to help women feel good about themselves. There is no hard sell. No commission. Our sales girls have been with us for a long time. The most important thing is that people leave our story happy. We value our clients happiness.”
And they do!
“Trying on clothes at Liana is like going to a party,” says Bodger. “It’s exciting and fun and everyone gets involved.”
If you’re going to Liana for the first time, call ahead to check that Liana is there, tell her what you are looking for and solicit her suggestions and advice. She’s not dogmatic or rigid. At the same time she may urge you to get a little bit out of your comfort zone and try something a bit more contemporary. Since most of us tend to cling to the familiar, it’s often exhilarating to be nudged in a new direction.
“To me,” says Bodger, “it always feels as if Liana’s on my side.”
You will feel that way, too.
Liana
324 Columbus Avenue, nr.75th Street
212-873-8746
Photo credit: Eleanor Foa Dienstag
