Sometimes dreams do come true. They certainly did for Deverie Troutman, a member of Western Illinois Electrical Coop. and the owner of The Velvet Hanger in Carthage. “I have wanted to have a store on the Carthage square since I was probably 6,” she shares. When property became available, she jumped at the chance. Her shop officially opened in May 2025.
The store is branded as an upscale consignment boutique for every budget. “It started out as a joke, because I have way too many clothes and antiques and things like that, so we joked that we were going to just do a pop-up consignment store,” laughs Troutman.
Ironically, the property previously housed a consignment store, so when it closed, the opportunity was too good to pass up. Her inventory includes men’s, women’s and kids’ clothing, shoes, accessories and housewares.
Troutman says the community has responded eagerly. Within the first couple of days, there were more than 300 bags of clothing to put out for consignment. Since then, she has seen visitors both local and traveling, with many of the former coming back regularly to peruse new items.
One of her hottest items is designer purses. “The nicer boutique clothes move pretty quickly, too,” says Troutman, explaining that consignment pricing encourages people to buy items they might opt not to purchase new at a high-end store. She makes sure to go through every piece and only puts out the items in the best condition. “A lot of our stuff will come in literally new with tags, and it flies off the shelves,” she says.
Due to its success, the store has already moved down the street into a bigger building. “I like to tell people that she opened it on May 8, and we outgrew it on May 12,” laughs Debbi Marmion, Troutman’s mom and full-time employee. By the end of the following month, the new building, which is almost three times larger than the original store, had been purchased.
While inventory quickly changes, there are items that don’t sell, which Troutman donates. “Every single thing in here, at the end of 60 days, gets donated to Tri-State Family Services,” she says. “It doesn’t just go in a landfill. It does get back to the community one way or another.”
Although she admits this endeavor has been more work than she originally expected, Troutman says she’s having fun and takes pride in her business. “I cannot imagine doing anything else. I mean, being self-employed is the most challenging, but most rewarding. It is worth it.”
The Velvet Hanger
604 Wabash Ave., Carthage
