Fashion headliner
Allisa Romanini wanted to honor her hometown, and she did it with style. Welcome to her new Base Boutique.
Base Boutique has recently joined the beloved clutch of Chagrin Falls stores offering fashion-forward clothing with timeless appeal. Find out what’s in Allisa Romanini’s newly-opened store. (Photography: Tony Palmieri)
For Base Boutique owner Allisa Romanini, there truly is no place like home. Growing up in the quaint and picturesque Chagrin Falls area, she had always dreamed of not only having her own store, but also of opening it in her beloved hometown. She didn’t know when or how it was going to happen, but she was determined to go the distance.
Now that her dream has turned into a reality, Allisa is honored to have her shop among the many she grew up with and hopes to become a fashion headliner and mainstay within the Chagrin Falls community.
“I just always thought it would be cool to be able to have my boutique here in Chagrin Falls. When I started looking for spaces, though, I wasn’t having a lot of luck,” Allisa explains. “Everything was booked up and it was a hot market. Things were going fast. I was a little bit worried that part of my dream wouldn’t be able to happen, at least not right away. But then it ended up perfectly working out. It was amazing.”
Allisa’s love for fashion started when she was just a little girl playing dress-up. As she got older, dress-up turned into helping her mom put together looks for nights out. Now she’s turned that flair for style into a career with Base Boutique, aptly named for the four bases that make up the store. Each base represents a different and important part of herself that shines throughout the sales floor, making the boutique uniquely her own.
First up is the wardrobe base, where premium brands, handpicked by Allisa, reassure shoppers they are getting only the very best, helping to level up their closet with timeless pieces that go beyond fashion crazes and short-lived fads. With Allisa’s high standards for style and quality, her store exudes a sense of excellence that is hard to find anywhere else. There is nothing overtly trendy or for a specific age group. Everything is designed to last.
“I try to pick things that anybody can wear,” says Allisa. “Things you can buy and have in your wardrobe for years to come.”
She does this with a wide range of styles, from prime basics like T-shirts, bodysuits and tank tops to high-grade denim, buttery soft cashmere sweaters and the perfect fit for a night out on the town. Allisa’s meticulous eye for premium brands is the cornerstone of her store and it’s what makes shopping here feel so special.
The second base features wellness, made up of body and beauty care with nourishing products like hand/body wash and lotion to soaps, sprays, cosmetic multi-sticks and beeswax lip balms. Everything comes in all sorts of flavors and scents and is made with natural and organic ingredients customers can feel good about putting on their body.
The third base ties into Allisa’s faith, which has always been a strong part of her life. She felt it was important to incorporate it into the store and does this with things like the T-shirts she embroiders herself with Christian sayings, elegant necklaces with stunning cross designs and Mother Mary pendants, which make thoughtfully beautiful gifts.
The last base is homebase; having the store located in her hometown. It brings something special into the community that she has loved and admired so much for so long. Allisa’s vision for the store is that it not only becomes a high-end shopping destination in Chagrin Falls, but also a place where people can pick out their new wardrobes for the season, find the perfect gift or just stop in and say hi.Allisa wants her store to be a comfortable space for people, and for them to feel like a part of something like she has growing up in the area.
Allisa has fond memories of growing up in Chagrin Falls, citing that everything about the town can make someone feel like they are in a Hallmark movie. She loves the Christmas season, Blossom Time weekend and going to the parade with her friends. She remembers grabbing breakfast at the old Yours Truly with her dad before school. Allisa’s store is like a love letter to Chagrin Falls, which is probably why it is so important to her that everyone who walks through the doors of Base Boutique walks away with something more than what she sells on the floor.
“I hope that my store will grow to be thought of as a staple of Chagrin Falls in the future, the same way I think of all of the stores that have been around for as long as I can remember.”
For more information about Base Boutique, please visit ShopBaseBoutique.com or call 440-318-1012. Base Boutique is located at 100 N. Main Street #220, in Chagrin Falls.
Base Boutique is like a love letter to the people of Chagrin Falls from owner Allisa Romanini, who grew up here and returned to further ingrain herself in the community.
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