The value of a good salesperson cannot be underestimated when shopping for clothes and accessories. As a lifelong lover of boutiques, the intimacy of the space and the ability to interact with the shop owner or manager when creating my wardrobe has been my go-to style for as long as I can remember. 

One of my favorite and most talented personal shoppers and stylists in Santa Barbara is Mimi Doll. She is so well known that many women just use her first name when discussing a fashion choice or idea.

Doll has been working in the Montecito and Santa Barbara retail community for almost 20 years. I’ve followed her journey quite by accident, but maybe there are no accidents.

We were drawn to each other for our love of “schmooze and shopping.” (The title of my next book.) Wherever she was, I often stopped by to just say hi and catch up on our lives.

Doll started her sales career in the late 1990s at Nordstrom, where she managed several departments and began her personal book. For those unfamiliar with “The Book,” it’s akin to the little black book that has her contact information of customers.

She then managed Mon Petit Bijou, a high-end baby boutique now under different ownership. Not only did she work in the store, she helped her customers design children’s rooms.

Her next job was with the iconic Blue Bee juggernaut, the first to bring urban pop to Santa Barbara. When asked to manage the store and hire all the sales people, she didn’t think twice.

“I jumped in to a fun but very crazy time,” she told Noozhawk, recalling the now-closed retailer.

After two years at the State Street chain, Doll was approached by Susan Pitcher, who asked her to manage her two cutting-edge women’s boutiques on Coast Village Road in Montecito.

There, Doll was reintroduced to many of the same women she helped when working at Blue Bee and Mon Petit Bijou.

After her daughter entered high school, Doll returned to Nordstrom as a personal stylist, a service the store still offers. Once again, she helped organize and find treasures for her customers.

In addition to being a sales manger for others, Doll began her own personal shopping business. Her services include editing her clients’ wardrobes, dressing them for special occasions, helping them organize what they already own for a trip, taking them to Los Angeles resources or other Santa Barbara businesses — or sometimes “just lunch.”

Two years ago, Jenni Kayne recruited Doll as a community liaison when the Los Angeles-based designer and manufacturer of women’s clothing and accessories opened a new store in Montecito’s Upper Village.

“It’s been my favorite job yet,” Doll exclaimed. “I get to put together all the things I like to do best: Build relationships and sell beautiful clothes.

“I know what is in the closet of my customers better then what’s in my own closet!”

When the new fashions arrive, Doll instantly knows which sweater or dress will be loved.

One of her most valuable traits is the trust people have in her discretion. While she has a cadre of celebrity clientele, you will never know who they are, unless you bump into them in the store.

“My customers trust my opinion because I am totally honest,” she said.

Her expressive face tells it all. When I exit a dressing room for her opinion, she will respond “That’s great” or, her personal favorite catch phrase, “Not so much.”

“I’d rather sells a customer one thing on every visit than 10 things once and then never see them again,” she said.

Having made the transition to the Internet age, Doll keeps her iPhone in hand at all times. She is texting and emailing her customers — from all over the country — with advice on what to wear to their next event or descriptions of new items that have come into the store.

If she does not have what her clients want or need, Doll will direct them to other stores, such as new retailers Whistle Club, Whiskey & Leather, James Perse for men, formal wear at Julianne and artisanal leather from Élu.

Doll has guided most of her employers to make charitable donations to community organizations such as the Dream Foundation, Visiting Nurse & Hospice Care, Breast Cancer Resource Center and Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation.

Doll knows that relationship building also involves giving back, and she does so with her own work and by committing her time to area nonprofits.

With the holidays over and winter just begun, I asked Doll for some fashion advice as I prepared for a getaway. If she had to leave town in 10 minutes, what would be in her bag?

Without missing a beat, her current favorite must-haves include rust suede short boots, a black cross body bag, slip dress, denim blue jeans, a coat sweater, a cream cashmere sweater, Rodin hand cream, rose gold tone hair barrette, a puff vest, felt fedora and, last but not least, the “you can’t go wrong perfect cotton tee!”

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