Rooted for Growth: Nostalgia Owner Silas Redd Expands His Niche
Written by Lia Hobel | Photos by Caroline Gray
The white farmhouse façade of Nostalgia Boutique in Purcellville is recognizable to locals and visitors with its grandiose porch dotted with antique furnishings and displays of carefully curated outfits. Inside patrons will find Silas Redd, owner of the vintage women’s clothing and antique furniture store. Just like his shop, he is a staple to the community, known for finding new ways to meet local needs. Over the past year, Redd has been developing Mister on Main — a new men’s shop located within Nostalgia.
Redd has studied his customers and how men shop compared to women, and strategically makes sure clothing options include varying price points. He also knows the three scenarios for male customers coming in to shop: The one who is interested in fashion and requires no assistance, the one who wants to look nice but doesn’t know how to tie everything together, and lastly, the one who dislikes shopping for clothing and wants to be in and out. Of them all, Redd finds the most fulfillment from using his fashion styling background to help the latter. Take Redd anywhere in the boutique and quiz him on different social occasions, and he can easily pull a look together. Redd will describe in detail how to properly layer, which pants can go without a belt, and whether to button or unbutton a shirt. That’s the personalized experience that he and his employees offer.
“I’ve seen retail shift over the last five or 10 years. We’ve gone from department stores to shopping online. And now, I think men, specifically, want to shop easy and local as well as be in and out,” Redd explains.
Unlike Nostalgia, which sells vintage clothing, Mister on Main sells modern menswear. The inventory offers men an easy wardrobe refresh with pops of pattern and colors to elevate any customer’s style. “I would say we have a traditional feel with a modern punch. You can come in here and get chino shorts but they’re going to have embroidered horses on them. Or you can come and get a solid T-shirt, but this cotton doesn’t shrink and it doesn’t fade, so it’s a little bit elevated but accessible.”
As Redd continues to revamp and customize the retail experience, he’s also planted roots for another venture located in the parking lot behind the shop. This spring, Redd took over the reins of the Purcellville Farmers Market. Rather than letting it fade when the previous lead moved on, Redd decided to make sure local artisans and growers had a future doing business in Purcellville.
“I know nothing about farming, but I know I have a space, and … my goal as a business has also always been to provide space for other entrepreneurs and other small businesses. That’s a big mission of mine,” he explains.
Redd says although the Purcellville Farmers Market is small, it has a bit of everything with no overlap. And that’s intentional. He wants to create a unique experience for the shopper as well as highlight the specialty vendors.
“You look around Loudoun County in general and there are a ton of farmers markets, and they’re big-scale farmers markets, but I think every community likes to have access to those types of things without having to travel far.”
Redd emphasizes that the farmers market in Purcellville, which he describes as a “hub,” is not about him, Nostalgia, or Mister on Main. “It’s something that the community wanted, and as long as I have the space, I will continue to do it.”
Redd, who lives in Winchester, has run Nostalgia for almost a decade and is happy to be part of the growth of Purcellville and support the community.
“I always joke that if this business [were] anywhere else it probably wouldn’t exist. The rental rates would be through the roof,” Redd notes. He adds, “There are so many great things about Purcellville that I think are still being discovered.”
With Redd’s quick wit, knack for style, and support for other entrepreneurs, he’s helping to shape the story of Purcellville’s future and keep residents well dressed. ML
The Purcellville Farmers Market is open every Saturday from 8 to 11 a.m. through October. For a complete list of vendors or to apply to join the lineup, visit purcellvillefarmers.com. The market is located behind Nostalgia Boutique and Mister on Main at 142 E. Main Street.
Published in the July 2024 issue of Middleburg Life.