RETAIL & LEISURE
ARIZONA CLOTHING BOUTIQUES, RANKED BY NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES
Top 10 ECO-CHIC CONSIGNMENTS, INC. dba My Sister’s Closet, My Sister’s Attic and Well Suited 4025 N. 44th St., Phoenix, 85018 // 602-9529616 // mysisterscloset.com; mysistersattic. com; shopwellsuited.com FOUNDED 1991 AZ EMPLOYEES 210 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHESTRANKING WOMAN Ann Siner, CEO and founder BUFFALO EXCHANGE 2001 E. Speedway, Tucson, 85717 // 520-622-2711 // buffaloexchange.com FOUNDED 1974 AZ EMPLOYEES 142 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Kerstin Block, founder and president DIVAZ BOUTIQUE/GRAND CENTRAL CLOTHING 922 E. University Blvd., Tuscon, 85719 // 520-884-7263 // divazboutique.com FOUNDED 2002 AZ EMPLOYEES 37 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Kristie Moore, owner and founder BRAND X T-SHIRTS 414 S. Mill Ave., Suite 120, Tempe, 85281 // 480-200-2833 // brandxtshirts. com FOUNDED 2006 AZ EMPLOYEES 19 PRINCIPAL Charles Goffnet, CEO HIGHESTRANKING WOMAN Alyssa Shirley, director of special projects
A FULL-CIRCLE SUCCESS
JENNIFER MUMFORDHODGE OWNER AND BUYER
BY CHRISTOPHER GEOFFREY MCPHERSON
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Few people go from patronizing a store as a child to owning the store when they become an adult, but that’s what happened with Jennifer Mumford-Hodge. “I grew up in Phoenix and went to school in Scottsdale,” Hodge says. “For my birthday or Christmas my mom would take me to HUB and let me pick out something. I would pick out a fabulous coat or a great pair of jeans. It’s an amazing full-circle story of a person who started when they were a teenager shopping at a store and now owning the store.” Hodge is the owner of HUB Clothing, a central-Phoenix contemporary clothing store that carries a wide range of high-end, premium denim for men and women. “I’ve been interested in fashion since I was a little girl,” she says. “I wasn’t one of those people who grew up knowing I wanted to be a fashion designer, but I had an entrepreneurial spirit. It was very important to me to have a business or be a part in growing it.” Her fashion education included a lot of “hands on” experience. “During college I had a summer internship at a fashion public-relations firm in New York City,” she says. “I had a wonderful time. Then I moved to Los Angeles and started working in
the wholesale side of the fashion business, selling clothing to boutiques. Essentially I was on the other side of the business that I’m in today.” One of those clients started her on the road to owning her own store. “I was selling to Tom Simon, who started HUB in 1991 on Mill Avenue in Tempe,” Hodge says. “He moved from Mill to Scottsdale Fashion Square where it stayed for more than 20 years. He was looking for someone to come in and help so he could retire. The door just kind of opened for me to walk in where I became his partner and then majority owner shortly thereafter. That’s been almost a decade now.” Hodge thinks it’s important to make it clear that going into fashion retailing requires more than thinking, “I like clothes. I’m going to open a store.” “There’s so much more to it,” she says. “It’s hard work. There’s a lot of schlepping, of dirty work, of things that go on on a daily basis that are really tough, really hard work.” Yet it’s hard work that can pay off. “Fashion is something that helps people feel better about themselves,” she says. “That’s the most important part of what I do, helping people take that next step and finding more confidence in the way they look.”
FRANCES 10 W. Camelback Road, Phoenix, 85013 // 602-279-5467 // francesvintage.com FOUNDED 2006 AZ EMPLOYEES 10 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Georganne Bryant, owner KISS ME KATE 5039 N. 44th St., Phoenix, 85018 // 602-840-6173 // kissmekateaz.com FOUNDED 1980 AZ EMPLOYEES 6 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Shannon Fox, owner CHA-CHA CHIC 20823 N. Cave Creek Road, Suite 104, Phoenix, 85024 // 623-363-9377 // cha-chachic.com FOUNDED 2009 AZ EMPLOYEES 5 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHESTRANKING WOMAN Cathy Garcia, president RITZY RAGS AND SHOES 8787 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 85258 // 480-596-0533 // ritzyragsandshoes.com FOUNDED 1988 AZ EMPLOYEES 5 PRINCIPAL Craig Marsh, owner HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Cherise Barter, sales associate HUB CLOTHING 5213 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, 85012 // 602-277-4822 // hubclothing.com FOUNDED 1991 AZ EMPLOYEES 4 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Jennifer Mumford-Hodge, owner and buyer CLOTHES MINDED 4810 E. Ray Road, Suite 13, Phoenix, 85044 // 480-940-9200 // clothesmindedaz.com FOUNDED 2013 AZ EMPLOYEES 4 PRINCIPAL AND HIGHESTRANKING WOMAN Kim Kendall, owner, operator B’GAUZE 10415 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 85283 // 480-609-2812 // bgauze.com FOUNDED 1982 AZ EMPLOYEES 4 PRINCIPAL Roger Miller, owner HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Pat Levesque, manager
WHO’S WHO IN BUSINESS // 2015
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