The former site of Morris Book Shop on East High in Chevy Chase is now the newest location of Steel Mill and Co., a lifestyle boutique filled with clothing and gifts.
Steel Mill and Co. is the brainchild of Chandler Rogers, who opened her first boutique at the age of 23 in her hometown of Bowling Green. It was 2016, which she describes as the most intense year of her life. She’d finished a semester of college, got married, had a baby and became a business owner. “It was very much of a blur,” she said, adding, “I wouldn’t change it one bit.”
1 of 3
2 of 3
3 of 3
Rogers had a keen eye for fashion and an intuitive sense for what other shoppers wanted, having worked in retail stores such as Aeropostale and Buckle since she was a teenager. When she opened her own shop, she made it her own, literally and metaphorically.
“It was about the atmosphere,” she said. “I’m about putting stuff together, I’m all about DIYing. I didn’t want it to feel cold and isolated; I wanted it to feel comfortable, a place where you can bring your friends, bring your family, bring your pet.”
The Bowling Green shop was successful right off the bat, in terms of foot traffic and friendly faces, and the work Rogers was putting into stocking merchandise. “You get so isolated when you open your own business,” she said. “In reality it’s not really that fun. It’s very lonely at times.”
Steel Mill & Co. manager Rachel Sheldon, left, with founder Chandler Rogers
By early 2018, Rogers found herself overwhelmed. Her husband had started his own business, and she realized she was making sacrifices at home for work and vice versa. “We’re going to have to do something, I can’t afford this,” she told her husband. She resolved to make both the business and her home life work, and then an unexpected opportunity presented itself.
“This guy walked in and asked for a meeting,” she said. “He told me, ‘Hey, we really like your look and aesthetic, we would like to buy you. We want to buy your ideas, make that a brand and execute it.’”
The guy ended up being a representative of Lifeguard Press, a Bowling Green-based licensing and branding company. She took the offer and still finds it remarkable that the timing was so fortuitous. “I wanted to quit; I was so tired with a baby and work, but someone saw my creativity and my ‘I’m not going to quit’ attitude.”
Rogers is still the face of the company, as the creator, director and buyer. “We did so well in the first six months, he asked me if we wanted to open another storefront,” she said. Big commercial stores were going out of business left and right, but the local Steel Mill and Co. in Bowling Green was doing very well. Rogers considered Nashville as the second location, “but it was going to be hard to find a niche,” she said.
Then she visited Lexington—for the first time in her life. And found just the right spot in Chevy Chase. “The location was great, the people were so nice,” she said. “I like the mature trees, and the feel of it.”
Individuality is key to the store’s merchandise, as well. The vibe is vintage inspired, yet tailored, with typically no more than two of any given item in stock. A phrase the company uses in marketing materials is “We believe that clothing is a statement of individuality and empowerment. Certain pieces speak to you and only you.”
The 3,700-square-foot store features an entire section of denim, along with racks of boho tops and sundresses, rompers and jumpsuits, paisley scarves and leather bracelets, baseball caps and panama hats. One prominent brand is Nashville-based ABLE, makers of jewelry, sandals, purses and wallets. The store also offers online sales.
Social media is an important component of the Steel Mill and Co. brand. Rogers offers up a Facebook Live video every Tuesday, by herself or with a staffer, to wear some of the new arrivals so shoppers can see how an outfit looks in person and how to style it with different accessories. The store’s Instagram account also features as many videos as photos, so that customers feel more involved in the Steel Mill experience. There are six full-time employees and 14 part-timers between the two stores. In May, the company introduced a “personal stylist program” for customers to receive individual attention.
“It’s nice to have people. I still make the decisions,” Rogers said of signing with a licensing company. “I really love being a part of the team.”