Talk Shop: Darby's Pharmacy
Talk Shop is our way of showing off some of our fabulous boutiques! Little English is sold in some of the most adorable children's boutiques across the country, and we love sharing them with you!
Now, more than ever, it's extremely important to #shopsmall and support local businesses! This week, we are featuring Darby's Pharmacy, a darling little boutique inside a family-run pharmacy in Andalusia, Alabama.
LE: Tell us your story! What led you to open your boutique?
Sarah Darby: This store is one of four pharmacies owned by my parents. I grew up in this business, and I think I always knew I would come back to it - my first job was opening a little gift shop in our second store!After college, I moved to New York City for a career in fashion. I started in childrenswear at Ralph Lauren and ultimately became an associate buyer for luxury and Polo accessories for Ralph Lauren North American stores and e-commerce. The experiences I had in childrenswear at RL and as a buyer have certainly influenced the practices in our stores and the way I approach market trips. Even the way we wrap gifts is to Ralph Lauren standards😊The store is located across the street from the only hospital in the area that delivers babies, so we saw a boom in baby gifting. As the babies grew up, our size offering grew with them, and we now sell through a size 7 for girls and size 12 for boys.
LE: When it comes to products, what is your favorite season and why?
SD: Every time we go to market, we declare it’s our favorite ha! But I’ve always been partial to fall clothes. As a little girl, I would get so excited to comb through the back-to-school catalogs and see all the corduroy, plaids, coats and knits. All my favorite holidays are in the fall/winter and, of course, football!! Since we’re in the deep South, we typically have hot falls and mild winters, so we love that Little English has so many short-sleeves and light fabrications that cater to our climate year-round!
LE: Speaking of seasons, we are in Spring and entering into Summer. How do you enjoy spending your time outside during this time?
SD: We are located in south Alabama, right above the Florida panhandle, so my family spends a lot of time at the beach! We love the laid-back atmosphere of 30-A and can be found there just about every weekend! During quarantine, we are enjoying spending time at home. Like so many, we typically live very rushed lives and are always on the go, so it’s been nice to slow down and relax in our own backyard.
LE: What is your favorite Little English collection or piece? (can be past or present)
SD: The Candy Cane collection from last year!! I love blue for Christmas, and the vintage-inspired details were icing on the cake for me! (Pssst! We might have more blue candy canes this Christmas! ;)
LE: Why is it important to you that you have classic children’s clothing available in your boutique?
SD: A classic children’s piece will truly become a timeless heirloom, and thirty years from now, you won’t be able to tell if it was purchased yesterday or years ago. There’s such a small window of time in childhood to dress them like they’re little, and I believe in taking full advantage! Little English creates pieces that we’re proud to sell to our customers and know they will enjoy for generations.
LE: What is the best way for customers to shop your store right now?
SD: Since we are a pharmacy, we are very fortunate in that our doors are still open. We also already had a drive-thru in place for the pharmacy, but our customers have been using it more and more for apparel and gifting! We are posting daily videos on our Instagram story to give both in-town and out-of-town followers an in-store experience without coming inside, and we are shipping product daily across the country! You can place an order by giving us a ring (334-582-3784) or DM’ing us on Instagram.