2025 Conference Tours
1. Wednesday Full Day Tour (≈ 8:00a-5:00p)
Tour Theme: “St. Louis Grown, Nationally Known”
Description: This tour’s theme is “St. Louis Grown, Nationally Known.” The day will begin with a visit to Conjetta Designs, a full-service fashion development and production agency founded in St. Louis. This female-owned and run, black-owned, and veteran-owned business services a wide range of clients including innovative startups, new designers, small boutiques, mid-sized brands, and major retailers. Next, we’ll stop at the corporate headquarters of So iLL, a renowned producer of rock-climbing shoes, climbing holds, climbing training products, and activewear. From there, we’ll head to Clayton to break for lunch and shopping! We’ll end the day with The Normal Brand, first with a stop at their retail store location and then with a visit to their corporate headquarters. Founded by three brothers in 2015, this St. Louis-based business is dedicated to making normal clothes much, much better through premium, signature fabrics and elevated, casual styles.
Cost: $75p/p
Tour Capacity: 25 people
Departure Time: Group meets bus outside lobby at 8:00a; Departure 8:15a
2. Wednesday Half-Day Morning Tour (≈ 7:30a- 1:30p)
Note: Time for lunch won’t be built in, but there are places near these locations where participants can get coffee, a snack, etc.
Tour Theme: “Secondhand St. Louis”
Description: This tour’s theme is “Secondhand St. Louis.” First, we head to Found by the Pound“factory store,” a 20,000 square feet warehouse featuring a surplus of classic thrift, retro, and mainstream apparel. There, we’ll learn about the company’s sustainability mission and their sales philosophy, “pick, weigh, pay!” Next up is Byrd Designer Consignment. Founded in 2002 as an upscale women's boutique, the store underwent a total concept overhaul in 2011, which has been famously referred to as “Flipping the Byrd.” This transitioned the business from a run-of-the-mill boutique to St. Louis’ premiere designer consignment shop offering high quality designer labels not easily found in the Midwest. Then, we’ll stop at Found.Vintage, an upscale, artfully curated boutique featuring a unique selection of trendy and timeless true vintage, modern retro, and premium pieces. Unlike its sister location, Found by the Pound, all goods here are sold by the piece and individually priced. Our final stop of the morning is Remains Inc., a sorting and bailing operation that processes thousands of pounds of clothing and textiles daily, providing sustainable solutions for individuals, businesses, and communities.
Cost: $50p/p
Tour Capacity: 25 people
Departure Time: Group meets bus outside lobby at 7:30am; Departure at 7:45a
3. Wednesday Half-Day Afternoon Tour (≈ 1:30-6:30p)
Note: There are places near these locations where participants can get coffee, a snack, etc.
Tour Theme: “The St. Louis Edit”
Description: This tour’s theme is “The St. Louis Edit.” First, we head to Plaza Frontenac, an upscale, two-level, enclosed, regional shopping center in Frontenac, MO. There, we’ll visit Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus, now part of the newly formed Saks Global. At Saks, our group will be treated to an insider tour through the store, including a chat with one of the luxury personal shoppers. We’ll then make our way on foot across Plaza Frontenac to Neiman Marcus for another insider tour. Next, we’re off to Webster Groves, one of St. Louis’s premier shopping districts, for stops at several neighboring local businesses, including Union Studio, Civil Alchemy, and Field Theory. Don’t forget to check out the Civil Alchemy owners’ coffee shop, The Annex, for a quick refreshment to hold you over to the opening reception!
Cost: $50p/p
Tour Capacity: 25 people
Departure Time: Group meets bus outside lobby at 1:30p, Departure at 1:45p.