Love, Noa: Girls’ fashion boutique owner follows the path of fashion trail blazer Ann Cole Lowe

 

What inspired you to start your business?
My now-5-year-old daughter. 

I love having a daughter; she is so much fun to dress! I couldn’t find the quality and the unique styles that I found in boutiques in New York and other places. I felt there was a gap in kids’ clothing since Lil Pals and Little Colony left the area. 

I am all about girl power; my company focuses on women and girls. 

Two things encouraged me to open Love, Noa: I wanted a place where little girls could feel good about themselves and moms could remember how awesome girls are. It is truly my passion project!

Why did you choose Flossmoor to open your business?
I have always loved downtown Flossmoor. It has that small town feel that you see in the Hallmark movies! I wanted somewhere I could meet people and really know them. 

I’m a social worker by training. I need that interpersonal contact. For years, my brother, Malcolm Thomas, and I stalked this area because I wanted to open a shoe store. I just happened to ride down Sterling one day last summer and saw “For Rent” signs; I jumped at the opportunity. I have never been happier.

As a business owner, what is your proudest civil rights moment or memory?
There are so many proud moments. Black people decided that they were going to create the narrative for their communities and force those in control to listen and make change happen. 

The togetherness for a community purpose bigger than their individual issues was something we can all learn from. 

I was born in 1966, so I don’t have first-hand memories of the civil rights movement. Both my mother and step-father were city aldermen and extremely civically engaged and connected to the political officials in Gary, Indiana. 

I distributed literature for her and other candidates she supported. I remember listening to the impassioned political conversations of my parents and their friends. As a result, my sister and I work in the political and community organizing field.

What has history taught you that could help someone else who is interested in starting a business?
No barriers exist that can keep you from doing what you want if you want it. 

The most awesome story I know is of Black Wall Street. If you think about the climate in which these businesses thrived, you will be in awe. 

This was during Reconstruction. We had just gotten through slavery and black folk started their own businesses. 

I read about John Merrick, a black barber who was born into slavery and once emancipated, amassed a great amount of wealth by owning several barbershops. I know there are challenges we face as business owners of color, but if former slaves can build successful businesses, the only thing that limits our success is ourselves!

As it relates to your business, what is your favorite quote or saying?
“Just Do It.” — Nike slogan

As it relates to Black History Month, what is your favorite quote, moment or memory?
I tell my husband daily, due to this totally insane political time that we are living through, “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” — Frederick Douglass




Ann Cole Lowe, born in 1898, was the great-granddaughter of an enslaved woman and a plantation owner. 

Lowe was the first world-renowned African American fashion designer to create dresses for socialites and brides and own a boutique on Madison Avenue. Her stunning gowns earned her the Couturier of the Year plaque in 1961 and listings in the National Social Directory and the Who’s Who in American Women. 

Without mentioning Ann Lowe’s name, The New York Times covered the wedding gown she designed for Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy in 1953 made from fifty yards of ivory silk taffeta at a cost $700, roughly $13,000 adjusted for inflation. 

Lowe not only designed Bouvier’s gown once, but repeated the feat and did it faster the second time, according to a feature on Lowe in The Glowup.

“When Bouvier’s original wedding gown and bridesmaids’ dresses were ruined in a flood, she and her team re-created in 10 days what had originally taken them two months to make.”  

She is now featured at the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

More information:

“Never settle. Always choose: Flossmoor Celebrates Black History.” 

Black History Month is a time to honor the struggles, triumphs and excellence of African Americans and their allies in our community who have never settled but instead always chose achievement, innovation, and excellence. 

Join the Village of Flossmoor in celebrating Black History Month by reflecting on local business owners, known and unknown, who have impacted Flossmoor and the historical figures that have inspired them, whether directly or indirectly.