Meet the local boutique owners intent on turning Fresno into fashion city

The rise of online retail has placed local boutiques across the country in a precarious place. Still, some boutique owners in Fresno have found the formula to thrive, citing in-person interactions as the backbone of their businesses.

Revival 23 is a clothing and interiors boutique located at The Shops at The Row, a recently established shopping district situated at the edge of Clovis and Fresno. Owner Teresa Pries started the business at a location in Old Town Clovis but closed the original store in January 2025 for the opportunity to be part of the new complex.

The store is populated with flowery sundresses, pastel colors, and Bohemian homeware. Self-help books are put on display alongside preppy denim. Psalm 23, which the store is named after, is written on the wall. The small-town feel is certainly there, but so is the fashion-forward attitude.

“There is a lack of shopping here in the area, and we’ve definitely filled that niche for our clients,” Pries said. “And we’re talking, there’s customers coming in high school, college. Their moms are coming, their grandma’s coming.”

Pries does not want Fresno’s fashion-forward residents to think they should travel to another city or rely on online-only retailers to build wardrobes they love. Rather than relying on traditional marketing, she believes in the power of word-of-mouth.

Revival 23 opened an online storefront during the pandemic to stay afloat during lockdowns, but post-pandemic, Pries said, “99%” of sales are made in-store. “Now, it’s mainly people that have been into store, maybe have moved out of state, that they’re the ones buying [online] and we’re shipping to,” she said.

Business is booming enough that Revival 23 will open a second store on May 30 dedicated exclusively to interiors. The new store will also be located at The Row.

Across town, Pum Bum has been a retailer of women’s clothes at River Park Shopping Center for a decade. Owner Alma Wolverton felt that there was a lack of higher-end clothing retailers in Fresno, and she believes her store has filled that niche.

A Fresno State graduate, Wolverton was in social work and finance before opening Pum Bum. The changing priorities that came with marriage and motherhood encouraged her to pivot.

“Retail is changing. It’s not what it was 10 years ago, but it doesn’t mean that people don’t still want to touch clothing, to feel clothing, to have a social experience, which is what boutiques are offering,” Wolverton said, citing last-minute events and fashion emergencies as situations where people would need to visit a boutique rather than waiting for shipping from an online retailer.

When River Park hosted a premiere for “The Devil Wears Prada 2” in May, Pum Bum collaborated with the shopping center by styling the women who attended. From Wolverton’s perspective, the opportunity to interact with clients in-person and celebrate moments together is the ultimate trump card that local boutiques have over e-retailers.

“It’s about getting one-on-one attention. It’s about community. ... The social aspect cannot be ignored,” she said.

Wolverton mentioned that restaurants do well in an agriculture-based economy like Fresno because of the popular farm-to-table concept, acknowledging that fashion may not have the same obvious appeal to the city. However, she doesn’t believe that means that there is no fashion scene in Fresno at all.

“I wouldn’t say that Fresno doesn’t have style. I would say that we were limited on places to go and things to do,” Wolverton said, adding, “Because our community is smaller, there’s just less to dress up for.”

As the city grows, the fashion scene is growing with it. The third annual Central Valley Fashion Week will take place in Fresno from July 18 to 19.

“I would say that we have a lot of people here that are style conscious, that appreciate style,” Wolverton said of Fresno, urging the city’s style savvy to shop local. “If we support our local restaurants, and we support our local shopping, all of that will thrive, and it will grow.”

Wolverton’s hope is that with even greater support from the local community, Fresno could become a city known for its fashion as it is for its agriculture.