Elizabeth Schermerhorn came up with a great idea during the pandemic when we were all staying at home, and she’s still at it today. Every Wednesday night and Sunday night at 8 PM, she creates a “live” store in which she and local women model the clothing in her business in the heart of Eastsound, Faraways Boutique. Each clothing item is tagged with a number, and viewers can immediately comment “sold” and the number of the item every time they want to buy something they see.
I have seen bits and pieces of these videos over the months when I’ve happened upon them on Facebook, but this is the first time I’ve sat down and watched. I didn’t even know what was happening; I just heard some local hubbub building and finally took some time to dig a little deeper.
This is very compelling. You feel like you’re hanging out with a bunch of really nice virtual “friends” for a few hours, and you know there can be anywhere from dozens to thousands of people watching along with you.
You get a chance to see outfits on various body types, which is also really nice. Shopping in stores isn’t my favorite thing, but I know what kinds of cuts look good on me, so when a clothing item is modeled, it’s a lot more fun than trying it on myself. The women also interact with the viewers here and there throughout the recording when there are questions from the audience, and there’s a really fascinating draw to shopping this way.
There’s no guilt that I’m spending too much time shopping because I can watch for only a minute if I want. There’s no pressure to buy, though it’s way more fun than being in a store. There’s no salesperson asking how they can help me, seeing as I don’t like to feel like I’m being served. The clothing is a lot more interesting when modeled by someone I know than when hanging on a rack. And you don’t have to be a local to shop on the live recording.
I know some women here on the island who only shop at Faraways now. They say the brands and fabrics that Elizabeth chooses are simply the best.
When I was looking at all of the previous shows, deciding which to take some screenshots from, I noticed that there were over 14,000 views of one night’s recording – look in the middle!
I decided that if you’re anything like me – you don’t love shopping and you didn’t know anything about these live recordings until today – you might enjoy this fresh new take on seeing and buying clothes. I also felt like introducing you to Elizabeth. Though I don’t know her well, I do know that she’s a lovely human being. And she figured out a way around the pandemic’s isolation, and her business looks like it’s thriving because of it.
Sunday or Wednesday night. 8 PM. Facebook. Faraways Boutique. Click here.
Thanks for the fun, ladies!
