ASHLAND Downtown shoppers in Ashland are bracing for a loss of a favorite store.
A Boutique, a specialty shop for women’s clothing and accessories at 1616 Carter Ave., is on track to close on Monday, Feb. 28, after 31 years of operation by owner Carolyn Runyon.
“I decided to close about two months ago,” Runyon said. “I’m so sad to have to do it because I love my customers. They’re such friends. And I enjoyed the shop so much. We were just like family.”
Runyon said because of illness, she hasn’t been able to run her shop. Family members with business of their own have been covering for her; the extra work has been too much.
The store and her presence downtown will be missed, Mayor Matt Perkins said.
“Carolyn has been a powerhouse. Being a small business owner as long as she has, she has seen our city go through some tough times and she’s thrived regardless,” Perkins said. “We’re excited for her retirement and wish her the very best.”
Shopper Kari Huffman was disappointed by the news.
“I am a customer of hers. Some of my favorite pieces are from there,” Huffman said. “I know I am definitely going to miss her sweet face and all of A Boutique’s fun styles. We’re definitely losing a treasure.”
Janet Dobyns, of Ashland, said she has enjoyed shopping at A Boutique for jackets and Brighton jewelry and handbags, but her bond goes much deeper with Runyon.
“We’re best friends and have known each other since first grade,” Dobyns said. “We went to dinner every evening.”
Both Carol Folsum and Diane Griffith worked at A Boutique, waiting on customers, pricing products, creating displays and unpacking shipments. They agree working for Runyon was a joy.
“There was a peace and comfort in that shop when you walked in because of Carolyn’s faith,” Folsum said.
“I loved going to work there and we became friends,” she said of Runyon. “We would go out to dinner and we celebrated birthdays together. I felt like it was family. We’d talk about our A Boutique family and that included all the people who had worked there.”
Her faith was at the center of what she did, the women both said.
“Carolyn is such a special lady and we would start every morning with prayer back in her office and when a new box of something would come in, she always prayed over the box that it would be a blessing to her customers,” Folsum said. “She always said that the store is faith and fashion.”
Griffith said she recalled that label.
“She was absolutely an inspiration, an inspiration to me and, I think, to many others,” Griffith said. “She puts the Lord first. If any customer came in and, while shopping, they mentioned they had a concern or illness, they never left the store until, if it was OK with them, she prayed with them.”
Folsum said Runyon did a lot of counseling of her customers.
“There was a lot of prayer for a lot of people in that back office,” she said. “It was sometimes just a revolving door of people who came in for prayer or to talk with her. She was just super faithful and very strong. She is such a blessing, not just to me but my whole family.”
Of course, Runyon’s store demonstrated her talent for fashion, too.
“She has a great eye for selecting clothing and accessories,” Folsum said. “When we were at market, she would find something and say, ‘That looks just like so-and-so.’ She just had an excellent eye for design and choosing the right things for people.”
Griffith agreed, adding she took great pride in the store.
“She was particular in what type of merchandise she got and the way the clothing was displayed. She wanted her store to look pretty,” Griffith said.
MaryAnn York, formerly of the Ashland Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, said she worked with Runyon on occasion.
“She is such a sweet lady. I worked with her during Poage Landing Days for years. She always has such a sweet smile,” she said. Runyon helped organize the artists and crafters the first year of the event, making sure each was juried into the festival.
One of the projects Runyon is known for is the Community Hospice Style show. Beth Taylor, marketing and community outreach for Community Hospice, said she has been involved with the style show for years.
“The style show would never have been as successful as it was had it not been for Carolyn,” Taylor said. “She always had new ideas about how to keep the event fresh. She used her own customers or community leaders for models. She was trying to make sure that it was the best show it could be.”
It was a community event Runyon said she enjoyed very much.
“I enjoyed doing the style shows,” she said. “Beth and I enjoyed each other.”
She said she especially enjoyed the show at the Paramount Arts Center during Christmas as a fundraiser for the theater. “The different stores acted out a song,” she recalled. “We did ‘All I Want for Christmas is You.’”
Runyon also worked for the benefit of other women, Taylor said.
“I think her supporting other women was really strong,” she said. “And she has the strongest faith of anybody I know. She’s a huge prayer warrior and always trusts that God is going to lead the way.”
Carol Allen, executive director of the Highlands Museum and Discovery Center, said her mother, who taught in the Ashland and Boyd County school systems, had Runyon as a student.
“That’s what brought us together, and we’ve kept in touch through the years,” Allen said. “She’s just a lovely person and the store is a gorgeous one. … We certainly will miss that store. It’s a unique downtown store that takes you back to the days of Delmar and Stars and Parsons. … Clothing stores like that just don’t exist in real abundance now.”
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