The Giddy Up Boutique, located in downtown Fairmont, has been operating as a successful thrift store boutique since 2000. It will expand next week for the fall clothing premiere with the opening of Broke Girl Boutique, an area tucked inside the shop.

Denise Rouse, owner of Giddy Up, explained that she first opened Hollywood Babe in 2000. It was only open on weekends and sold children’s clothing.

“When I was doing the kid side, the moms coming in would be asking me to start taking and selling women’s clothing. So we added that, and then later we started to do men’s and that’s really taken off,” Rouse said.

In 2012, Giddy Up opened and has been selling a range of clothing items and shoes — men’s, women’s and children’s sizes, infant and all the way up. It also sells swimsuits, belts, purses, jewelry and accessories.

Rouse shared how she first got into selling clothing.

“I’ve always loved thrift store shopping, so I thought it would be fun for me and fun for Fairmont,” she said.

While the location of the boutique has changed several times, it has always been in downtown Fairmont.

Giddy Up allows people to sell and buy clothing.

“It’s like one huge recycling project. We leave no carbon footprint,” Rouse said.

The boutique is unique in the sense that Rouse didn’t buy anything to decorate the space. She reuses and repurposes items, giving the shop a fun atmosphere.

Giddy Up also has no computer system. They use scratch paper and an old-fashioned, bright pink cash register, which employee Ily Schlenk said many people comment on.

Rouse shared that the name, Giddy Up, is based on her character, Prairie Ann, from her husband Jeff’s show, “As the Corn Grows.”

“The Giddy Up is kind of a spoof because I’m so not a cowgirl,” said Rouse, laughing.

While the name of the boutique may be something of a joke, it does serious business.

“The amount of out-of-town people that come into shop is amazing. We have people from all over come in, and we have people from all over bring in their clothes to sell,” Rouse said.

“For a consignment store, this has lasted a long time and continues to grow,” she added.

Both women remarked that since the closure of JCPenney and, most recently, Shopko, they have been seeing more visitors.

“We couldn’t do it without our consignors and shoppers,” said Schlenk, adding that there are still a surprising amount of people who do not know about the store.

Giddy Up is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Broke Girl Boutique features a collection of the best, latest arrivals for women’s fall fashion, including name brands. It will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 31 and 1-4 p.m. Sept. 1. It will open the same hours the following weekend, with the exception of being closed Sunday.

Rouse said they plan to see how it goes and then may open it up more. Either way, she is excited to see it open and hopes people come check it out.

“If you have to work, this is a fun job. We get to meet the best people,” Rouse said.