Local shop celebrates 10 fashion-forward years in Wilmette

When she was in high school, Wilmette resident Mari-Rose McManus already knew she wanted to operate an independent boutique. She fulfilled that dream a decade ago when she opened Exhibit at 1148 Wilmette Ave., which recently celebrated 10 years of bringing sustainable and independent designs to the community.

A high-school-aged McManus was inspired by The Mexican Shop, a local Evanston boutique that opened in 1967 and is still bringing colorful finds to Dempster Street. McManus was particularly intrigued that the shop’s owners would periodically close throughout the year, travel for new fashion finds and then reopen.

“I decided, someday, I’m going to open up my own store like that that involves travel and coming back and bringing interesting stuff back from all around the world,” McManus told The Record of her young self’s aspirations. “To make a long story short, as I was approaching turning 50 in my own life, I thought I’d better do this now or I’m probably never going to do it.”

So, she dove right in.

McManus, a family law attorney with a small practice in Wilmette, noticed that there had been a vacant storefront in the same building as her law office for quite a long period of time. And the shoe fit: She could open up the storefront and find a way to more easily juggle her law practice and run a store — at the very least, she wouldn’t need to go far between the two.

“In the beginning, it was very very challenging,” she explained of the balancing act, “but now I have a routine, and I’ve cut way down on the types of cases that I take in at my law practice, which helps to maintain stability.”

McManus doesn’t open the shop until 11 a.m. and is closed on Mondays, providing her with valuable time to focus on her law work.

When she first opened Exhibit, she said it was like a curated apartment space where everything was for sale — furniture, clothing, light fixtures, you name it.

But, she said, it’s really morphed into a more clothing-centric store. She still sells furniture, jewelry and handbags among other items, but the women’s clothing is what drives the business.

McManus said her focus is on smaller designers that consumers might not find elsewhere as well as items that are environmentally sound.

“I really try to focus on helping local economies and not fast fashion,” she said.

To curate the shop’s collection, McManus travels to New York twice a year to meet with designers at shows and keeps an eye out for special finds when she travels, visiting local boutiques around the world. In this way, she has accrued items from a couple of designers based in Hawaii, France, Italy and Australia.

Among the designers one can find at Exhibit (with a few well-known names thrown into the mix) are: Hannoh Wessel, DL1961, Liviana Conti, Beatrice, Ound, LaTierra, Nicholson&Nicholson, Stateside, Mignon Doo, Harshman, It Is Well, Les Filles d’Ailleurs, Grammar, Skin, Bunon, Asparagus and Love Binetti.

Lining the store this spring, McManus said customers will see bold, fun graphic or floral prints; timeless pieces and silhouettes; and natural fabrics such as comfortable, beautiful cottons.

To celebrate the boutique’s 10th anniversary in November 2024, McManus hosted a celebratory cocktail party and trunk show with one of the local designers with whom she works, The Checkroom, a coat-maker. Those who missed out need not worry as she has another trunk showing coming up for Mother’s Day from 5-8 p.m. on May 1 at the store.

As she commemorates this past decade of owning her dream store and looks toward the future, McManus recognizes how important community has been and continues to be.

“I opened the store partly to build community in Wilmette,” she said. “It’s really a connecting point. People send their friends to the shop; they buy gifts for their friends; they buy special occasion dresses and say, ‘Oh, I wore your dress to my son’s wedding,’ or whatever it is. That is really rewarding to me — to be a part of the community and to be a part of people’s events in their lives.”

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