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closeA perfect store for a poor economy
Best friends since the third grade, Keri Davis and Scena Whittle turn a love for shopping into a new Sumner consignment store
By Avani Nadkarni/for The Herald
There’s a saying about never going into business with a friend, but Keri Davis and Scena Whittle scoff at the sentiment.
Since they met as Auburn third graders whose bedroom windows faced each other more than three decades ago, the pair, who could easily pass for sisters and have often been mistaken for twins, have been inseparable. This month, they opened a new Sumner consignment shop together, which they named BB’s Closet.
“We’ve been through highs, we’ve been through lows, we’ve been through deaths and divorces,” Davis said of the pair, who have two daughters, four cats and one dog each. “We can get through this.”
“We’re shoppers,” Davis said of herself and Whittle, who lives in Black Diamond. “We thought Sumner needed something like this.”
Davis enlisted her best friend and just two weeks after they had secured a location, BB’s Closet opened its doors. It’s a consignment shop that the women took such care in decorating and meticulously filtering through clothes that one recent customer thought she had entered a boutique selling brand-new clothing. The beauty, Whittle said, is that it’s like-new clothing at recession-friendly prices.
“That’s why people consignment shop now, because of the economy,” Davis added. “You can pretty much get whatever you pick up and not feel like you’re breaking the budget. At department stores, you pick out five items and have to decide which one you can get.”
The pair have overcome challenges already. They’re open seven days a week, haven’t hired any other employees and Whittle still works a retail job in Covington.
“Once again, I’ve come to rely on my friend,” Whittle said of Davis, who mans the store alone when Whittle is working at her other job.
“I haven’t made dinner in who knows how long,” said Davis with a laugh. “But it’ll get better. It’s just the beginning.”
The pair said they feel at home in Sumner, where they have been welcomed by shoppers and fellow business owners alike. If BB’s Closet goes well, the friends have high hopes to expand.
“Some day we hope to grow so big we can add a men’s store,” Davis said.
Every step of the way, Davis and Whittle have incorporated each other and their families: For their first batch of clothing and accessories, they asked family and friends to donate. They even named the story after the childhood nicknames they gave each other, nicknames they still use to this day: “Berry” for Davis and “Beana” for Whittle.
The duo is seamlessly incorporating that comfortable female camaraderie to the concept of the store. Both owners said they strongly believe in having something for every woman, from teenager to adults. Anything that has been sitting on shelves for longer than 61 days, they will donate to a local charity. They have a section of plus-sizes clothing and something for every budget.
“We want to cater to all girls,” Whittle said. “Girls of every size, shape, creed and color. We girls need to stick together, that’s all I know.”