(Courtesy of STRUT)

You hear the rumble of a loud car engine; you feel the ground tremble as a large truck heads your way. It is safe to assume a typical food truck or massive moving van is making its way down the road. However, this is not the case. This vehicle is bright, fashionable, and marked with the word “STRUT” in large red letters along the side. The van comes to a halt and the doors open inviting shoppers inside Texas’ first mobile boutique.

A new shopping experience has arrived in Texas—a rolling retail space. With several Texas locations including one in Dallas on Lovers Lane, STRUT has decided to expand further and open a boutique on wheels. The mobile shopping store has been vrooming around Texas for the past few months, spending most of its time in Austin. The vans are useful for promoting a store’s business and expanding a store to new areas without the high cost of relocation. Influenced by several California based fashion houses, this particular STRUT mobile boutique has many unique features.

“On the exterior we have awesome graphics by an artist we love,” said Elisa Wilson, mobile boutique driver and general manager of STRUT. “We have an AC/Heater installed so the temperature is always comfortable for everyone shopping. The interior includes wood floors, dressing room, full-length mirrors, upholstered walls, full racks of clothes, and a sound system to blast our favorite tunes while everyone is shopping.”

Wilson along with other STRUT store managers will work inside the rolling retail space. The van creates a more personal setting and shopping experience for STRUT clients. The mobile boutique’s inventory caters to the expected taste of shoppers in the van’s specific location. Currently, the mobile store is used primarily for particular events and charity functions making inventory more personalized due to specific requests from customers. However, if there is no particular event scheduled the van carries most in store items including women’s clothing, accessories, and shoes on occasion.

“Everyone should be able to find something that will make them look great,” Wilson said.

The STRUT mobile boutique does not have a particular route, but can often be found parked outside one of the STRUT locations to serve as a billboard. In addition, the rolling space can make personal visits to customers’ homes.

“One of our main reasons for creating the van was to bring STRUT to people, so we don’t have to wait on people to come to us,” Wilson said.

The STRUT van is scheduled to make its Dallas debut in December. Many students at Southern Methodist University are already customers at STRUT’s Lovers Lane location and are looking forward to the mobile boutique’s arrival.

“I hate leaving my house and going into crowded stores, where you have to find parking, which is normally impossible,” said SMU Junior Holly Mulinder. “I love the personal visit aspect of the van and will definitely be giving it a call!”

The mobile boutique hopes to increase the store’s popularity and familiarize people with the STRUT name. The van was created to attract new customers and maintain satisfaction within STRUT’s current clientele.

“I absolutely think the van will be very popular with students,” SMU Sophomore Ashley Gross said. “Its such a cool concept, it would make a new and unique shopping experience.”

As a small business, Wilson expresses gratitude and appreciation for all STRUT shoppers. She hopes the van will enable the store to expand geographically and as a business while keeping up the hype about STRUT.

For more information, visit STRUT’s website at shopSTRUT.com.