This is Hull and East Riding --
What do you wear to meet a woman whose clothes boutique is fast attracting a reputation as one of the most stylish in the region?
This was the dilemma I faced when interviewing Sophie Miller, the brains (and beauty) behind Boutique Milla.
So, clad in my one-and-only good work dress, and making sure my shoes and bag are co-ordinated for a change, I turn up to meet the girl who has single-handedly set up a business that is bucking the trend for failing high-street stores.
When we meet, it's clear to see Sophie has the charm to match the brains, as she couldn't be more polite, and although she looks fantastic in her skinny jeans and animal print top, she isn't the least bit intimidating.
Instead, she's warm and welcoming, as her legions of customers are discovering.
Fresh from celebrating her business's first birthday, Sophie, 25, is riding high on optimism and confidence as she looks back on what has been a gruelling, but ultimately successful, year.
"This year has been fantastic, we're getting such a great influx of new people. A lot are recommendations," says Sophie.
"We have one customer from Leeds who comes every fortnight."
Breathlessly excited as she discusses the Swanland boutique, her "baby", she reveals a steely business mind that belies the ultra-glam image.
With 11 A grades at GCSE, and a degree in law and accountancy, she possesses the kinds of skills that would have seen her excel in the City. But that wasn't what she wanted.
"I knew from a young age that I wanted to work in fashion," she says.
"My great aunt had a boutique in London's Bond Street and always looked so fashionable.
"It really inspired me – everything she used to wear and say. That's where it all came from."
When she finished at Leeds University, Sophie cut her teeth on the graduate scheme at Marks and Spencer, where she was just one of six accepted out of 1,000 hopeful applicants.
She worked as a store manager in Leeds but found her real passion was in dealing with the customers, not the management side.
So after 18 months, she turned her talents to selling jewellery, which she imported from Europe and sold in 12 outlets across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
"I knew that the goal was to get the shop. It had been my goal since I was little," Sophie says.
"The jewellery business was going well and one day, by chance, I was driving down Main Street and I saw the empty shop."
That was December 2011. She opened Boutique Milla in March last year, having raised all the finance herself and used her savings.
"I did it all on my own. I was really dedicated to ending up where I am now. I had saved for it for years," she says.
Sophie was careful to fill the shop with clothes that she knew would appeal to many different women, so she can dress women big or small, and she is proud of the fact she can dress three generations of the family – daughter, mother and grandmother.
She stocks a wide range of brands, including Oui Set, In Wear and The Pretty Dress Company, whose famous fans include Beyoncé and Liz Hurley.
Throw in a trip to New York, Paris or London every year to source her collections and it's clear the former Hull Grammar School pupil puts her heart and soul into the business.
Sophie still has the jewellery business, too, and, as well as selling a large range of pieces in her shop, she also has outlets in Lincolnshire.
But how does the busy business brain unwind?
"I work six days a week and when I'm not working I do find it hard to switch off," Sophie admits.
"But the best thing about my job is helping women through fashion.
"In my experience, women particularly find it hard to know how to dress after having children. They have a crisis moment where their bodies have changed and they don't know what to wear.
"But regardless of your size, the way you dress makes a big difference to your confidence and how you feel about yourself, and those are the customers I love dressing."
Helped by Natalie and Caroline, her equally friendly and down-to-earth assistants, the team are busier than ever.
"We offer a one-to-one dressing service and totally honest advice and we wouldn't be happy if people left the boutique in clothes that didn't make them look their best. If their friends came in and said they didn't like something they bought from us," says Sophie, looking horrified.
"Well, that would be the worst thing ever." Reported by This is 1 day ago.
What do you wear to meet a woman whose clothes boutique is fast attracting a reputation as one of the most stylish in the region?
This was the dilemma I faced when interviewing Sophie Miller, the brains (and beauty) behind Boutique Milla.
So, clad in my one-and-only good work dress, and making sure my shoes and bag are co-ordinated for a change, I turn up to meet the girl who has single-handedly set up a business that is bucking the trend for failing high-street stores.
When we meet, it's clear to see Sophie has the charm to match the brains, as she couldn't be more polite, and although she looks fantastic in her skinny jeans and animal print top, she isn't the least bit intimidating.
Instead, she's warm and welcoming, as her legions of customers are discovering.
Fresh from celebrating her business's first birthday, Sophie, 25, is riding high on optimism and confidence as she looks back on what has been a gruelling, but ultimately successful, year.
"This year has been fantastic, we're getting such a great influx of new people. A lot are recommendations," says Sophie.
"We have one customer from Leeds who comes every fortnight."
Breathlessly excited as she discusses the Swanland boutique, her "baby", she reveals a steely business mind that belies the ultra-glam image.
With 11 A grades at GCSE, and a degree in law and accountancy, she possesses the kinds of skills that would have seen her excel in the City. But that wasn't what she wanted.
"I knew from a young age that I wanted to work in fashion," she says.
"My great aunt had a boutique in London's Bond Street and always looked so fashionable.
"It really inspired me – everything she used to wear and say. That's where it all came from."
When she finished at Leeds University, Sophie cut her teeth on the graduate scheme at Marks and Spencer, where she was just one of six accepted out of 1,000 hopeful applicants.
She worked as a store manager in Leeds but found her real passion was in dealing with the customers, not the management side.
So after 18 months, she turned her talents to selling jewellery, which she imported from Europe and sold in 12 outlets across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
"I knew that the goal was to get the shop. It had been my goal since I was little," Sophie says.
"The jewellery business was going well and one day, by chance, I was driving down Main Street and I saw the empty shop."
That was December 2011. She opened Boutique Milla in March last year, having raised all the finance herself and used her savings.
"I did it all on my own. I was really dedicated to ending up where I am now. I had saved for it for years," she says.
Sophie was careful to fill the shop with clothes that she knew would appeal to many different women, so she can dress women big or small, and she is proud of the fact she can dress three generations of the family – daughter, mother and grandmother.
She stocks a wide range of brands, including Oui Set, In Wear and The Pretty Dress Company, whose famous fans include Beyoncé and Liz Hurley.
Throw in a trip to New York, Paris or London every year to source her collections and it's clear the former Hull Grammar School pupil puts her heart and soul into the business.
Sophie still has the jewellery business, too, and, as well as selling a large range of pieces in her shop, she also has outlets in Lincolnshire.
But how does the busy business brain unwind?
"I work six days a week and when I'm not working I do find it hard to switch off," Sophie admits.
"But the best thing about my job is helping women through fashion.
"In my experience, women particularly find it hard to know how to dress after having children. They have a crisis moment where their bodies have changed and they don't know what to wear.
"But regardless of your size, the way you dress makes a big difference to your confidence and how you feel about yourself, and those are the customers I love dressing."
Helped by Natalie and Caroline, her equally friendly and down-to-earth assistants, the team are busier than ever.
"We offer a one-to-one dressing service and totally honest advice and we wouldn't be happy if people left the boutique in clothes that didn't make them look their best. If their friends came in and said they didn't like something they bought from us," says Sophie, looking horrified.
"Well, that would be the worst thing ever." Reported by This is 1 day ago.