Meet Kristie Laughrey of The Hop in Longmont

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristie Laughrey.

Kristie, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started The Hop in 2017 after a life long love affair with vintage fashion. As a kid, I was always one to pick an outfit or hairstyle that was unlike what the other kids were wearing. In high school, I would frequent the thrift stores or rummage through my mom’s old things to find something unique.

Fast forward several years later, I found myself working in corporate retail and still feeling this lingering drive to do my own thing. My husband, who also shared my passion for all things vintage, encouraged me to follow my dream. My daydreams soon became brainstorms that lead to planning out my shop but there was still one (big) missing piece – where was I going to open my shop so I could reach my customer base? Due to the highly competitive (and expensive) market, I decided to open a mobile shop. It was the perfect fit for my vintage store. On new years day 2017, we went to pick up our little 1956 mercury camper. After six months of renovations, the camper was ready to rock n’ roll. We managed to pack a BIG vintage experience into our small vintage camper. The following months and years would include lots and lots of events, private shopping parties, putting on fashion shows and fashion guides, and making my own line of products for the shop.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Driving and parking the camper is sometimes a challenge. Ha! It was pretty “easy” to start the business. I’d had the basic plan in my head for years. There has definitely been some challenges but I continue to push through. My husband and I renovated Tootie (our camper) ourselves and quite frankly, a lot of the credit goes to my husband. Not ever taking on a project like this before, we had some trial and error along the way, but it was exciting to build the store ourselves, from scratch. We needed to open our doors for the first time at the 1940’s Ball on June of 2017. I joke that we were putting on our business sign as we were driving down the road to the venue.

In 2019 I was looking to expand to a brick and mortar when I had a major medical issues come up that put the brakes on everything. I think that has been the biggest struggle. It was just as the shop was really building momentum that I then had to put things on hold. I was able to lean on my amazing husband and family to help out with the bigger shows, but I had to adapt and move sales to be mainly online last year. I guess in retrospect, that was prepping me for an unknown pandemic this year. We will continue to offer online sales (shipping within the united states) and hope to get back to offering shopping parties, private styling sessions and events as soon as soon as we can. I still hope to open The Hop into a brick and mortar once we can see daylight from the current situation the world is in.

Please tell us about The Hop.
The Hop was one of the first mobile vintage shops in Boulder County. Local to Longmont, Colorado, the shop made its debut June 2017 at the 1940’s Ball in Boulder Colorado. Since then, the little 12-foot vintage camper has popped up at many events around the state and partnered with lots of local businesses to set up shop. The Hop is the brainchild of Kristie but often, you will see her husband Adam helping out with the shop. They are both passionate about the fashion, design and lifestyle of the ’40s, ’50s & ’60s.

The Hop offers quality hand-picked pre-loved pieces, top vintage-inspired brands, and vintage styling sessions. We cater to all vintage seekers, rock ‘n rollers, and nostalgia lovers. We believe that people should rock their own style and feel fabulous doing it.

We started with just true vintage pieces but then expanded to reproduction styles to offer our customers more selection and sizes. We will always stay true to our vintage roots, but love opening up the world of vintage styles to more customers. You will find in our shop women’s and men’s apparel and some great accessories. Our new hit item is our very own Tootie’s Turbans. I designed these with my mom and we hand make each one. Since we aren’t set up at events right now due to COVID, you can shop all our looks online and we ship within the united states.

Even though we specialize in styles from the ’40s to 50’s we carry a wide range of decades and styles that anyone can wear. I love showing people how to incorporate vintage with their current wardrobe. Whether they are just looking to dip their toe in or do a full-on cannonball I can help them find a new style that will look great on their body type and that they will love. You can find us set up at events, online, and I offer shopping parties and private styling sessions. If a customer would like help picking something out, give us a shout by phone or email and I am happy to help you find your perfect piece.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
As a kid, I used to love going through my mom’s closet, trying on all her things. Specifically, I have this memory of going through her dresser drawers. My favorite thing to go through was her collection of scarves. Most of them she had collected since she was in grade school. Recently she told me how in high school she would wear them around her neck but then criss-cross them in front and tuck the ends into her bra straps. No one else was wearing them this way, so she was quite the fashionista! In college, she gave me a few of her favorite old scarves she wore growing up. I treasure these scarves. That’s why I love vintage pieces so much. They have stories that go with them that today’s fast fashion will never have.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.atthehopshop.com
• Phone: 17205441693
• Email: atthehopshop@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atthehopshop/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/atthehopshop/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/atthehopshop

Image Credit:
William Kucharski
Carrie Swails
Indagatrix Photography

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