Many people choose to reinvent themselves or shun their past once they’ve made it, but not Janine DiLauro.
In fact, the 34-year-old co-owner of Molletta boutique in Old City and cofounder of Philadelphia Fashion Coterie embraces her native South Philly and credits it for making her the fashion-savvy woman she is today.
"[South Philly] women and the girls always knew how to dress. Everyone always looked so nice — very ahead of the fashion world," DiLauro says.
"At St. Maria Goretti, we were always ahead of the game," adds the 1987 Goretti graduate. "We always carried our notebooks and a copy of Vogue magazine."
DiLauro cites one of her teachers at Annunciation B.V.M. School, Gail Avicolli, as perhaps her most inspiring role model from childhood. Avicolli, of Packer Park and now an archdiocesan school official, would set the best example by always dressing to the nines, DiLauro recalls.
"She would come to school looking like a million dollars every day. She always had her hair done and beautiful clothing," DiLauro says.
The award-winning educator, later a principal at Epiphany of Our Lord School, instilled in her pupils that brains and beauty can — and often do — go hand in glove.
"We could do so many things with our life and still look glamorous. She really encouraged us to go to college and have careers," DiLauro recalls.
The student also developed her fashion sense at home at 12th and Tasker.
Every Saturday, her parents would watch classic films starring such glamour girls as Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe. "I just loved the way the women used to dress — the classic look," the fashion maven notes. "They just looked so glamorous. Today, everyone wants to wear jeans and be so casual."
You won’t find jeans or T-shirts at the Third Street boutique DiLauro co-owns with Christa Bevilacqua, 29, a South Jersey native.
Only the classics will do — like dresses that bridge the transition from work to evening wear, DiLauro says. After all, most of her clients are attorneys and other professional women who work in offices that do not subscribe to the casual dress theory.
"They want to look professional without looking matronly," she says. "They dress that way from 8 in the morning until 11 at night. They want to look good and feel good while at the same time evoking a professional image."
Last month, Molletta featured a line of classic hats inspired by the 1940s. The hats sold out in no time, so DiLauro and Bevilacqua returned to Manhattan to order more, only to learn that the designer had also sold out. "It’s so nice to see women in hats, even younger women. With a beautiful hat and scarf, they just look so nice and put together for not a lot of money," DiLauro says.
The store owner feels glamour dressing is all about self-confidence. The way she sees it, when a woman takes the time to tend to her appearance and don stylish garb and accessories, she feels better about herself.
After attending Temple University, DiLauro worked as an investment banker for seven years while pursuing a master’s degree in finance at Saint Joseph’s University. When the Conshohocken company she worked for closed, DiLauro was devastated. The employees were simply handed a final paycheck and told not to come back, she recalls.
At the time, DiLauro couldn’t see the blow was actually a blessing in disguise. Citing her love of fashion, DiLauro’s husband suggested she open a boutique in Old City. The couple lives at Third and Christian streets.
After doing her homework by researching the market, interviewing local retailers and tailoring an expansive business plan, DiLauro and Bevilacqua opened Molletta; the name in Italian means "clothespin."
The partners modeled Molletta’s interior after a boutique in Paris that they visited with deep burgundy walls and big comfy sofas. The upper level of the cozy European-style shop sells vases, candles, placemats and an array of home furnishings, while the lower level is dedicated to clothes, jewelry and handbags. Some of the designers featured include Parallel, Nanette Lepore, Essendi and lingerie by Arianna. Molletta also carries Ripiani leather handbags from Italy and haute couture from Michele Tan of Chicago.
A head for business and heart for fashion has paid off handsomely for DiLauro. Molletta celebrated its one-year anniversary Saturday.
Opening a business is never easy, but add to that a string of bad weather, construction barricades, water damage and pothole-ridden streets and the one-year mark was even more significant.
Molletta even courted Hillary Clinton to put in an appearance for a book-signing a couple months ago. Things were a go until, much to DiLauro’s chagrin, the Secret Service axed the plan because of potential obstacles the street construction could pose.
The first year was a challenging experience for the women — but in a good way, says the South Philly fashionista. "It just gave me and Christa the faith that we can do it and have our own business without working for someone."
In addition to Molletta, DiLauro and Bevilacqua — along with fellow South Philadelphian Paige Wolf — founded Philadelphia Fashion Coterie. The organization focuses on increasing and promoting local fashion commerce.
Stocking their shop over the last year, DiLauro and Bevilacqua crossed paths with a lot of talented local designers, many of whom were more impressive than their New York counterparts, DiLauro explains. Instead of constantly making trips to the Big Apple to buy merchandise, the women decided to give homegrown talent a shot.
"We wanted to give them the opportunity to launch their business and get recognition," DiLauro says. Molletta features some of these designers and hosts frequent fashion shows to promote their products.
As a way of giving back to her beloved South Philly community, DiLauro plans to open a store just like Molletta on East Passyunk Avenue, where she’s shopped all her life. Only this Molletta will have a different color scheme, DiLauro adds with a laugh.
"There’s some great shops in South Philly," she says. "I would like South Philadelphia to become a shopping mecca for people in Philadelphia to come and see that we do have very classy clothes and great stores."
