Kristie Pettibone describes the past few weeks as “non-stop work.”
With the help of friends and family, she’s spent most of her time preparing her new Leawood storefront for opening day, as curious onlookers take peeks inside while they walk by.
With a career in visual merchandising, making storefronts look pretty isn’t new to her — but this one is different. Because it’s all hers.
This week, Pettibone “soft-opened” her new children’s boutique Wild Plains — her first business of her own. The boutique will celebrate its grand opening at the Ranch Mart North complex on Saturday, May 18.
Wild Plains operates at 9421 Mission Road
- The boutique moved into a space on the northern end of the newly redeveloped Ranch Mart North shopping center, just off West 95th Street and Mission Road.
- Foo’s Fabulous Café occupied that space for 13 years, before it shuttered at the end of 2019.
- Wild Plains operates from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.
Wild Plains offers clothing and accessories for young children
The store focuses on clothing for children newborn to age 10, though Wild Plains carries items for children up to age 14. That includes items like dresses, shirts, hats and sunglasses.
In addition to clothing, Wild Plains also carries knickknacks, plush animals, puzzles and memory games for children.
Most of the brands in the boutique’s inventory are European — and small family-run brands as well. The goal, Pettibone said, is to stock items that customers likely won’t see anywhere else locally.
“I wanted to specifically pull unique brands — nothing that any of the other local boutiques have,” she said.
The boutique’s name was a joint effort — the “wild” part serving as a nod to her love of colorful prints and patterns and the “plains” part pointing to the Great Plains of the Midwest, which was her husband’s idea.
The layout of that store represents that divide, with one side dedicated to “wild” colorful items and the other “plains” side dedicated to more neutral-toned attire.
‘Mommy’s store’
In the past few weeks, Pettibone said shoppers at Ranch Mart North have been curious and excited about the boutique’s opening. But one person has been particularly excited — her 3-and-a-half year old son, Waylon Pettibone.
“He’s already picking out things he’s going to buy,” she said. “Every time we drive by, he says ‘Hi, Mommy’s store!’”
He’s also fond of the wooden Jeep featured at the back of the store, as Pettibone expects other children will be too.
The store also has a large reading nook in the back, which she said will become a space for “story time” readings and events.
Ultimately, she said, she hopes Wild Plains becomes more than a quick shopping errand for children and their parents.
“(My hope) is that people don’t just come in here to pop in and pop out,” she said. “That they can come in here and hang out and let the kids play — and it can become a community space.”
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