Young ladies looking to feel like a glamorous diva no longer have to rummage through mommy’s dresser draw; thanks to Ritzy Glitzy Girlz Club, they can come in and be catered to like a real superstar.
Venetta Carraway, owner of the club, which opened at 245 Jericho Turnpike in New Hyde Park this past February, said that her business is all about getting dolled up and having fun.
“We are a glam spa for little girls,” she said. “We do glamour parties and walk-in services for girls that come in, and they can either do an all-inclusive birthday party, or we
have a few things that are ala carte. They can do manicures, pedicures, facials, hair and make-up, get their nails done…they can even get dressed up and we have a runway where they can do a fashion show.”
In addition, the Girlz Club also has a boutique in the front of the store and an interesting innovation that’s sure to pack the young ladies in- a lip gloss and lotion creation station.
“Girls can create their own lip gloss,” Carraway said. “They can choose a flavor, add glitter, and all of that good stuff. It’s a lot of fun.”
For Carraway, who originally hails from South Carolina but has called New York her home since 1995, beauty has always been an interest of hers, even from a very young age. So much so, in fact, that it eventually became her livelihood.
“When I was little, I used to do a lot of party planning, and I always had a fascination of dressing up in my grandmother’s fancy clothing and jewelry…then the neighbors would come over, and I’d get them all dolled up, dressing them up, fixing their nails,” she said. “Six years ago, I started doing it on the go as a mobile spa…we had six vans, and we would come to parties and glam the girls up.”
Seeing some early success with her mobile spa business, Carraway eventually decided to open her own brick-and-mortar establishment where she could really take the concept to the next level.
“When we went to the homes and set things up, it looked so pretty, and I thought that if there was a place set up like that all of the time, then it would be a dream come true…like a big pink bomb just blew up,” she said. “It would just be a place where all the girls would want to come and hang out and have a good time.”
But aside from just plain having fun, there’s a positive side-effect to all the glitz and glamour for young ladies, according to Carraway.
“A lot of people think that we’re creating girls with superficial views on beauty,” she said. “But in reality, we try to promote self-confidence and self-esteem in little girls…you might have a girl that’s a little shy, but dressing them up a little bit will help her come out of her shyness and feel confident about herself. It’s not about looks, it’s about having a good time and realizing that everyone here is special.”
In the end, Carraway said that Ritzy Glitzy Girlz Club is a unique, all-inclusive experience that all young misses should try out.
“It’s like a fantasyland, dream place for little girls and when they come in, they don’t want to leave…it’s pink, pretty, and all girls love it,” she said. “Even the girls that into sports and not into girly things, they stop in and they love it. They’ve gotten their hair and nails done and they’ve been back several times since. It’s a girly atmosphere, and it rubs off.”
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