TEMPE

Lorelei Boutique now open in south Tempe

Weldon B. Johnson
The Republic | azcentral.com
  • Lorelei Boutique%2C 6440 S. McClintock Drive%2C specializes in women%27s clothes and accessories
  • Boutique owner Julie Tenney had a successful career in corporate communication
  • Information%3A www.theloreleiboutique.com%2C 480-491-1230
Lorelei Boutique, at McClintock Drive and Guadalupe Road in Tempe. The shop specializes in women's clothing and accessories.

Julie Tenney loved her career in corporate communications and had a 20-year track record of success, but she always felt she wanted more.

She wanted her own business.

Tenney, 44, of Tempe, accomplished that goal when she opened Lorelei Boutique, a cozy shop in south Tempe that specializes in women's accessories, jewelry and clothes. The store, on the southwestern corner of McClintock Drive and Guadalupe Road, opened Oct.1.

Even though opening her own place was her long-held goal, it wasn't easy for Tenney to leave the corporate world. After a brief stint as a journalist, she worked in corporate communications for Honeywell and Wyndham Hotels.

"I tell people I was equally excited and terrified," Tenney said. "I had always been that corporate girl. I was always about doing well at the job, getting promoted, getting on to the next thing. I moved my family a couple of times. I loved it but I always wanted my own thing."

She said the time was right for making the move. She was back in the Southeast Valley where she grew up. Her daughter was a year from starting high school. She knew what kind of shop she wanted and had plenty of support from friends and family in putting her plan into action.

But the unexpected death of her father on Valentine's Day helped convince her that there was no need to wait. She said her father was always a champion for all of his children and encouraged her to go after her goals.

"You have to follow your dreams," she said.

The shop is Lorelei Boutique, after Tenney's mother and daughter, who share the name.

The store features handbags, jewelry and accessories, along with a small selection of clothing. Tenney said her career in the corporate world prepared her for running the shop.

"As a female executive you have to accessorize," Tenney said. "You have to know how to put an outfit together to be able to go into that room to meet with a CEO or whomever it is and really present yourself in the right way. It's a whole package you have to present."

The store is stocked with brands that Tenney loves, such as Big Buddha and Melie Bianco handbags, as well as local items, such as the Chocolate Robin line of jewelry created by Phoenix designer Louise Duckworth.

Lorelei Boutique is an intimate shop of about 650 square feet that is decorated with vintage furnishings that create an inviting atmosphere.

"I wanted you to feel, when you're buying lovely things, that you're in an environment that is equally lovely," Tenney said. "Like you're in your home."

She said it was difficult to find as small a space as she was looking for, but she solved that by subdividing the Tempe shop with her husband, who is a photographer. He moved his studio into the rear of the space. She and her husband met when she was a reporter at a newspaper in Lake Havasu.

Though she made a career change, Tenney is not entirely through with her own line of work. She learned to manage people and a budget in the corporate world and she will use her knowledge of market research in her business. And she will still be working to put out the company message.

"I still do marketing and (public relations)," Tenney said. "But now it's for me."