Cox BBA Utilizes Business Skills to Open Retro-Chic Boutique 
Through savvy know-how and a series of fortuitous events, Kacky Pritchard pursues her entrepreneurial dreams.

Dallas (SMU) – After launching a line of aprons as an SMU college student that caught the eye of Kate Spade, interning in New York City with the design icon herself, and working in Dallas in fashion wholesale, Kacky Pritchard (BBA ’05) decided it was time to branch out on her own.  Opening September 5, her new boutique, Kacky & Carl, is certain to be a premier Dallas destination.

Located in Dallas’ trendy Uptown area at 2722 Routh, Kacky & Carl features reasonably priced dresses and skirts, one-of-a-kind custom and vintage furniture, home furnishings and gift items, original artwork, various vintage items for sale on consignment, and, of course, a selection of Pritchard’s aprons that started it all.

Since she was a little girl, Pritchard always loved old movies.  One evening during her sophomore year in college, she was watching “The Thrill of it All” where Doris Day plays a housewife who becomes a famous television personality.   During a scene where Day’s character was making ketchup in the kitchen, Pritchard noticed her apron. She wondered why people didn’t wear aprons anymore, and it was then that she decided to start her own apron business. 

Fortunately at the time, she was also enrolled in her first accounting class, where she realized that the structure of business is basically what comes in versus what goes out.

“As long as you have a structure that is bringing in more than is going out, you have a viable and successful business. The ‘bottom line’ is everything, and if you keep that in mind—whether you’re selling clothes, building homes, or running a practice—you can make it a success,” said Pritchard.

Pritchard began making half and full-length aprons in a variety of fabrics from raw silk to whimsical patterns.  She created a Web site, and within one year she had sold over 2,000 aprons.

“When I made these aprons, it wasn’t about cutting up chicken,” she said.  “It was more about entertaining and presentation.  I wanted to bring back that feminine, old-fashioned look.”

Through a chance encounter, Pritchard met Kate Spade and introduced herself.  Her goal, she says, was simply to send Spade an apron so she could use the endorsement.  Pritchard told Spade how highly she thought of her style, and she wrote down the Web address for her aprons.  Three weeks later, Pritchard received a call from Kate Spade herself, offering a summer internship at her flagship store in New York City. Without hesitation, she accepted. 

Upon graduating from SMU, Pritchard began working with the oldest wholesale fashion showroom in Dallas.  Her boss had been in the wholesale fashion industry for more than 35 years, and he took the time to teach her the ins and outs of the business.  In addition, she made friends with Lisa Barnes, an SMU alumna from the Class of 1998.  After working together for a year, Barnes and Pritchard decided it was time to branch out and start their own business, Kacky & Carl. 

“Without my boss’s experience, my Cox degree, and a perfect business partner, there is no way I would have been willing and ready to go out on my own to open Kacky & Carl,” said Pritchard.  “But I have always had the drive to run my own show.  It’s great to be able to run the business, the creative, and the marketing side of the store, especially when it is all about your passion.”

Kacky & Carl combines Pritchard’s love for old-fashioned femininity with Barnes’ fashion-forward style. The Grand Opening celebration will be held on October 5 from 6:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

About SMU Cox
SMU’s Cox School of Business offers a full range of business education programs, including BBA, full-time MBA, Professional MBA (PMBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), Master of Science in Management (MSM), and Executive Education. The school also offers a number of unique resources and activities for students, ranging from its Business Leadership Center (BLC), Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship, Maguire Energy Institute, and American Airlines Global Leadership Program (AAGLP) to its Associate Board executive mentoring program and an international alumni network with chapters in more than 20 countries. SMU Cox is ranked among the top business schools nationally and internationally by major publications, including BusinessWeek, The Economist, Financial Times, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and U.S. News & World Report.

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