When Isaac Mizrahi began his line of lower-priced designer clothes, Target had a hit on its hands. Buying trends at a low price is nothing new though — Ames consignment stores have been working on that for many years.

The newest consignment shop to open in Ames is 101 Main Consignment Boutique.

Owner Mary Ann Coder and daughter Sarah Hansen opened the shop less than a month ago, and they say business has been busy.

“The past weeks have been very steady,” Coder says. “The other morning when I came to work there was a woman waiting outside our door; that was a great thing to see.”

Coder says many different types of people have visited the store, but she finds it hard to predict what the main traffic hours and customers will be like because the store is still new.

“Saturdays seem to be our busiest; it’s a little too soon to tell because we haven’t been open long enough,” Coder says.

“So far, our customers are of all age groups — some students, families, mothers, older people. We have quite the variety of customers.”

The decor for 101 Main Consignment Boutique has the feeling of an upper-scale store.

The walls are covered in artwork from area artists and feature freshly painted murals of fashion figures and designs. Antiques make the atmosphere of the store feel calm.

Most of the clothing and accessories they carry are new with the tags still attached or clothing that has barely been worn at all. The prices are lower than in other mainstream stores — Target carries Isaac Mizrahi trench coats for $31.99.

At 101 Main, a new trench coat with the tags still attached is $15 and jackets are as low as $8.

High-end brands can be found in all areas of the store — a Coach purse, an Ann Taylor shirt, Banana Republic pants and a few hardly worn fur coats. The store’s motto is “it’s time for a break from the ordinary,” and Coder says a certain standard is used for the items in the store.

“We take in only lightly used clothing, accessories and hardly worn shoes. Soon, we will be offering new bath and body products. We want people to feel like they’re shopping in this store, make this a unique consignment store,” Coder says.

The Calico/Classic Closet, 1001 E. Lincoln Way, is one of the oldest consignment stores in Ames, boasting 25 years in existence.

The two general managers, Gail Scott and Joan Hightshoe, say they have a simple mission.

“Our store is like a family; we get to know frequent customers, it’s a fun and flexible people person job,” Hightshoe says.

“Our frequent customers are the ones that advertise our store.”

Hightshoe attended Iowa State and studied briefly in the textiles and clothing program. She has had retail experience on a corporate level, but says she prefers working in a smaller, independently owned store.

“It’s more fun to have a job that makes it fun to go to work,” she says. “I shop here, my daughters shopped here, and at least half of my wardrobe is from here. I just love it here, I couldn’t ask for anything better.”

Gail Scott has been with the store for 21 years and says different people bringing different things in make for a unique shopping experience.

“You’ll never know what you may find here,” Scott says. “Our busiest season is the fall, and drop-off appointments are already booked until December. We only take what’s in style and in season. You can never tell what people will buy or sell.”