Abby & Katie designers, Smak Parlour

Abby Kessler and Katie Loftus, like Barbie and Skipper or Romy and Michelle, are nothing if not a dynamic duo. They dress alike, talk alike and emphasize that everything they have accomplished, they have accomplished together. Smak Parlour, their funky Barbie dreamhouse of an Old City boutique, reflects their unique and unified style, which they describe as “vintage-inspired, girly, fun and flirty.” While their inspiration comes mainly from each other, many of the dresses in their collection were inspired by old-school Barbie dolls, and yet maintain an indisputably cool degree of hipster chic. Everything about Smak Parlour is Philly born and bred (except the fabric, which they ship in from L.A.), and Kessler and Loftus design and wear all of the clothes they sell. In addition to their designs, cupcake icing pink walls and glittery cinderblocks complete the store’s look and the girls’ frilly-tough style. To get by in a business that tends to weed out independents like Kessler and Loftus, they’ve had to toughen up. Since they met at the bathroom mirror in high school, Kessler and Loftus have been best friends, business partners and seemingly inseparable. They went to college together, moved to New York together and then moved back to Philly together. Eventually they opened Smak Parlour together, and they’re passionate about what they create: well-made clothes for every woman. As Kessler puts it, “When you put it on your body and it feels good and you look good, well, that’s what we’re here for.” (Ann Stock for Philadelphia Weekly, photo by Irina Zhorov)