At 24 years old, Liza Kindred became bored with retail management and decided it was time to open her own store. The store – Zushy*, 2406 Lincoln Way – will open its purple building to customers on Aug. 19.

“The color [of the store] is Zushy Purple,” Kindred said. “It fit in trying to build a brand image and found the purple to be really attractive.”

She said the color signifies royalty and is “girly without being overly feminine.”

Kindred has been working on the store for four years.

Zushy* is a take on a British slang word that means extravagant style, Kindred said.

Amber Hathaway, the creative director, coordinates the buying and does a lot of the interior planning.

“I would say Zushy* is very progressive,” Hathaway said. “We’re really boutiquey, urbany, New Yorky and very European.”

Hathaway said the store caters to the feminine as well as alternative women’s styles.

“We’re selling moderately priced, fashion forward, urban women’s clothing,” Kindred said.

The target consumers are female ISU students, ages 18 to 24. The store will carry bath and body accessories as well as denim and specialty tops.

“It’s really a broad assortment,” Hathaway said.

“The prices are comparable to things you would find in Younkers, but the products will be things you can’t find anywhere else,” Kindred said.

She said the store’s merchandise will come from wholesale vendors in Chicago and New York. There will also be some clothing from private labels as well as local designers.

“We have jewelry from the Naughty Secretary Club and clothing from G Couture Clothing,” Kindred said. “We will also be modifying clothing from American Apparel.”

She said American Apparel makes clothing, such as lingerie, without using sweatshop labor.

“We have an in-house studio that will be used to ensure we will have clothes that can’t be bought anywhere else,” Kindred said.

The store will offer women a chance to be unique in their dress.

“There are a lot of cookie cutter stores [in Ames] that sell the exact same things, especially in the mall,” Kindred said. “I know people here want to be able to express themselves differently and stylistically.”

She said the response to her store has been overwhelming.

“We have a lot of faith in Ames and the residents of Ames in being able to express themselves in a fashionable manner,” Kindred said.

“Everything we have, you’re not going to find anywhere else in Ames,” Hathaway said.