Rogers Trading Company

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Photo by Madoline Markham.

0512 Rodger's Trading Co.

Rogers’ buyer Monica Sbrissa shows off the store’s women’s fashion for spring.

Rogers Trading Company has a storied past. It began as the Army/Navy store in the camouflaged building downtown, transformed into a hunting and fishing store and ten years ago moved out Highway 280 as an outdoors store. Today, located in their own building behind Logan’s Roadhouse, Roger’s is focused on not Army/Navy, not hard goods like tents, but lifestyle clothing featuring authentic outdoor brands—with strictly the people who live along Highway 280 in mind.

“We have learned who our customer is,” said owner Lee Rogoff, whose father started the business in 1945. “We want to emphasize that function plus fashion equals lifestyle.”

Starting this spring, you can find fashion-forward brands in amongst Rogers’ outdoors brands. They still have North Face, Patagonia, Columbia, Guy Harvey, Keen, Life is Good, Kavu and all the shorts, shirts, shoes and bags that have made it a destination store for decades. But now in the right side of the store behind shoes is a boutique of affordable, high quality pieces for teen girls and their moms.

Greystone Legacy resident Monica Sbrissa is bringing a fresh perspective to the selection at Rogers by buying new women’s lines for the store. A mom of a 13, 17 and 19-year-old who attend Berry Middle, Spain Park High and the University of Alabama, she knows what teens and moms like and has always had an eye for fashion.

Racks are lined with this spring’s top trends: open shoulder, high/low cuts and color block. Sbrissa has brought in three lines from LA. Ya los angeles dresses run up to $39.95; their knit tops are only $14.95.Tresics tops (up to $24.95) all feature more than one fabric and other elements like asymmetrical lines that make them stand out in a wardrobe. Glam also offers dresses and tops for a slightly higher price point.

“It’s fun,” Sbrissa said. “We are hoping to see more and more mother-daughter shoppers come in. We want to be the go-to store on 280. You don’t have to go to the Summit to find this stuff.”

Also among the new brands are iT! jeans and Wish Collection (thewishcollection.com), a line designed by Greystone Legacy resident Daniel Reeder. Sbrissa posts their new items on Facebook as they come in.

Along with their clothing collection, you’ll find fashionable spring and summer sandals and flip flops alongside Rogers’ Keens, Tevas and Chacos. New shoe lines include Rocket Dog, Sbicca, Big Buddha, Off the Beaten Track, and a line of sandals from Italy.

Rogers also plans to start selling more men’s lines and hosting fashion shows and trunk shows in the near future.

The addition of these new lines is all a part of Rogoff’s focus on serving the people who live on 280 and only them: not necessarily all of Birmingham or where he might open a store in the future. He plans to have only this one store and to serve its clientele well.

“You can’t do that when you have 14 different stores,” Rogoff said.

Rogoff takes pride in being one of the largest lifestyle outdoors single-location stores in the area. North Face has put them in their top five in a nine-state region. But he is also excited to bring in new brands to write the newest chapter of the Rogers story.

“Stay tuned,” Rogoff said. “We are just getting our feet wet.”