Style Child
1070 University Ave.
Hillcrest
220-0480
stylechild.com
Hours: Mon.-Sat., 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sun., 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
By Christy Scannell
SDUN Senior Editor
When Kyle Olewnik was expecting, she couldn’t find the furnishings or baby clothing that she, well, expected.
“There were two things I was craving: modern décor and furnishings, and true fashion,” she said. “Instead, what I kept finding was shabby chic or country furnishings and poor quality blue clothes with trucks on them.”
Once Rhys, her son, was born, she continued to lament an inability to find stylish children’s products in San Diego but her job as an environmental engineer and responsibilities as a new mom kept her too busy to seek a solution.
And then one day it hit her, she said: “Rhys brought out my fun side, my creative side, and I suddenly knew I wanted to do something more fun and creative. I wasn’t cut out to be a stay-at-home mom but I knew it was time to make a change.”
At the end of 2006, Olewnik left her engineering post and began researching a location and product line for the kind of kids’ store where she would want to shop. After visits to boutiques in other states and a study of San Diego demographics, the Point Loma resident chose to open Style Child in Hillcrest’s Uptown Shopping Center, across from Ralphs.
“Children’s spending is very healthy in the Uptown area,” she said of her decision, “and there wasn’t anything like what I wanted to do nearby.”
The learning curve continued after she opened the 1300-square-foot store – luxury lines with high-maintenance fabrics didn’t move well, for example – but Olewnik said she has never sacrificed her fashion sense for sales.
“It needs to be what appeals to my aesthetic,” she said about Style Child’s merchandise, which includes clothing for children to around age 7 as well as nursery furniture, toys, diaper bags and other gear. “This isn’t just about making money – I have to love everything I carry.”
One of her current favorites is the Tea Collection, a culturally influenced clothing line that changes by season.
“They pick a country and the designers travel there so the fabrics and design are inspired by the culture,” Olewnik said. “Plus they care about their retailers and the quality is fantastic.”
For summer, Tea visited Jejudo, Korea’s largest volcanic island with temples that boast painted mums and lotuses, and they toured the bustling streets of Seoul. The result? Sundresses, shorts and graphic tees in vibrant colors, some with Asian prints and stitching.
“We get a lot of parents who say, ‘I wish they made that in my size,’” Olewnik said as she walked past a bright wall of Tea Collection outfits in her store. “And that’s the whole idea – the clothes should be cute and sweet and fun for the child but appealing.”
While children’s clothing does have subtle trends, Olewnik said, the best items are timeless.
“It’s finding the trifecta: quality, comfort and style,” she explained. “It’s kind of trend-proof – they will wear those pieces until they can’t any longer [due to size]. When kids feel good in the clothes, they want to wear them.”
To that end, Olewnik said she especially seeks organic and “green” product lines, and furniture that meets or exceeds safety standards.
After nearly four years in business, Olewnik said she is proud not to have compromised her original objective for Style Child to fill an unmet need in San Diego.
“You only get to dress your child for so many years, so you should enjoy it. Don’t make it an afterthought – relish it,” she said.
