Cindy Reich flying under the radar with Whim
Cindy Reich thought she was done with retail when she closed her Wink boutique in 2008 after nearly a decade in business. She wanted to stay at home with her teenagers.
Turns out, she missed the business — a lot.
So last fall, Reich opened Whim, a women’s clothing and accessories boutique with modern furnishings, emerging designers and contemporary brands. The store is at 3637 W. Alabama, Suite 160.
“Women never remember the pain of child birth, so retail is kind of like that,” Reich said. “It’s a lot of work, but I love it.”
Contrary to its name, Reich says her store wasn’t opened on a whim.
Though Wink focused on a young clientele who liked hip clothes and lots of denim, Whim is all grown up and well dressed.
She carries designers such as Hunter Bell, Katharine Kidd, Warm by Tracy Feith, Gray by Jason Wu and Robert Rodriguez.
“It’s been a whole new learning curve back, getting back in business. When I had Wink, we didn’t have many online sales and no social media, but that’s a huge focus now. I saw this as an opportunity for me to learn something new.”
It’s also good timing personally. Reich’s daughters are all grown up now. Lilly Reich, 24, is a researcher at Yale University, and Maggie Manus, 29, joins Methodist Hospital as an internal medicine physician in the fall.
Reich, a native of Cincinnati, moved to Houston in 1981 to work for an oil and gas company, which helped pay off her student-loan debt. But six months into the job, she was laid off. She later worked as an actuary and earned a master’s degree in accounting from the University of St. Thomas.
Reich knew nothing about retail when she partnered with a friend to open a children’s clothing store. With a $50,000 investment, she was ready for the venture — but her friend never came up with her half of the money.
Too deeply invested to call it quits, Reich called on friends in the fashion business to help her find women’s clothing brands to feature in the store, which morphed into a womenswear shop. Wink boutique was one of the first stores in the city to carry Nanette Lepore, Rebecca Taylor and Catherine Malandrino.
“I had an eye for finding those people, emerging designers. They had collections the bigger department stores wouldn’t take a chance on.”
With Wink situated next to Brazos Bookstore on Bissonnet, Reich figured if she didn’t make a profit, at least she’d be well read.
Today, her Whim, much like Wink, is a bit under the radar on the Houston retail scene. It’s a place where hidden treasures are discovered. Reich likes it that way.
She’s also unassuming in her style, preferring a pair of running shorts to almost anything. She runs five to six days a week and has logged seven marathons over the years.
“I’m great at picking out what I think looks good on other people, but I’m not really that stylish myself. Just give me blue jeans, T-shirts and great shoes.” joy.sewing@chron.com