For Blair Burkett, a steadfast devotion to fashion and the arrival of her goddaughter Landry illuminated her career path toward fashion studies. After graduating college, Burkett decided to build a business around her passion for fabrics and patterns by opening up the children’s boutique Blaand. Mixing fashion and family, Burkett reimagines children’s clothing by brining a fresh new wardrobe to Baton Rouge.

We reached out to Burkett to learn all about her shop and vision:

 1. What was your inspiration for opening Blaand? 

My inspiration for opening Blaand was my goddaughter/niece Landry. When she was born, I couldn’t believe how much love I had for this little child. She changed my life in so many ways. She was born in December of 2019, the same month I was graduating college. I had a vision of working in the fashion industry, but the plan became clearer after my sister helped me realize my newfound love for children’s fashion. Once we started looking together at all of the children’s clothing options available, we realized the choices were limited. So, in an effort to not only provide styling help for my sister but also for other moms, I opened Blaand.

2. What is your professional background? 

I graduated from Louisiana State University in December of 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in fashion merchandise and minor in business administration.

3. What is the overall style/aesthetic of Blaand? 

From the very beginning I knew that I wanted the overall style of Blaand to be a mixture of boho, chic and fun. When I am choosing the inventory and individual pieces for Blaand I usually ask, “Would I wear this if they had an adult version?” and if the answer is yes, I know that it fits the Blaand brand! The items are “cute” as well as “cutesy.”

 4. What is one thing you think customers should know about Blaand that they may not be aware of?

We offer local pickup and delivery to Baton Rouge and surrounding areas. We wanted to give this option to our local customers because who doesn’t love same-day delivery or pickup? Also, we appreciate our customers so much, that we offer extras and perks for those who join our email list and follow us on our socials.

5. What are some of your best-selling products? 

Our best-selling products are our onesies, especially the Flutter Sleeve Linen Baby Romper. The loveys—a loosely stuffed plush animal or blanket—have also been the best product to purchase as either a gift or for your own baby. We just added swimsuits as a new product category, and I think they will be our newest crowd favorite.

6. Where can customers find Blaand? 

You can find us at shopblaand.com. The website was designed by the wonderful team at Torapath Technologies. I brought them some of my ideas and images of what I was looking for when it came to the website, and what they created was everything I asked for plus so much more. You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram @shopblaand.

7. How does Blaand stand out from other children’s boutiques? 

There are a few things that we believe make Blaand unique. We are not your typical Southern children’s boutique. We offer more of a Southern-meets-SoCal style of clothing. I personally select every single item on our website, making sure every piece fits my standards before it is sold to our customers. I want our customers to know that when they order with us, they are receiving high-quality brands for clothing, shoes and accessories with parents in mind. We also provide our customers with the highest level of customer service. On the website, we have integrated a chat feature to allow visitors to ask questions, and we always get back to them in a timely manner. Lastly, one of my favorite features on the website that makes us stand out from other children’s boutiques is our bundles. I pick out outfits and offer them as a bundle to our customers, and when they shop by the bundle, they receive the discounted cost.

 

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8, What’s the story behind the name Blaand? 

The moniker stemmed from my and my goddaughter’s connection—Blair + Landry. We are anything but bland!

9. What is your favorite thing about the boutique?

There are so many rewarding benefits to having Blaand, but my favorite thing has to be when our customers send us pictures of their little ones wearing a piece they got from Blaand. Every single time I receive a photo of one of our butterfly babes wearing an outfit, a pair of shoes or a stylish bib they got from Blaand, it brings me so much joy! I’m so grateful to get to see how Blaand’s products are bringing others joy as well.

10. What can customers expect this coming spring season?

We have so many fun spring items coming very soon that I can’t wait to show everyone! Our customers can expect to see lots of florals, pastel colors and nature-inspired themes. There is a new brand we will be carrying at Blaand that has the softest pima cotton clothing. The adorable designs caught my eye, but when I felt the material I knew it would be a special addition. We have also received feedback from our amazing customers about wanting to see more smocked clothing, so we have hand-picked some new smock dresses that fit the brand aesthetic.