Applause Dancewear celebrates 40 years

A Round of Applause

It’s been 40 years since the iconic Homewood dancewear store opened its doors. Here, a chat with owner Katie Wade Fraught is a walk down memory lane with her eyes on the future.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF APPLAUSE DANCEWEAR

Cindy and Buddy Wade, the original owners and Katie’s parents, at the grand reopening in fall 1991

BY STEPHANIE GIBSON LEPORE

The Wade family is made up of dancers and dance teachers. And years ago, when patriarch Buddy Wade tired of paying the inflated prices for dancewear at conventions, he decided to open a place of his own, and Applause Dancewear was born. Today, daughter Katie Wade Fraught has taken over the business, but it was her parents’ foresight that got them rolling. “They saw the need for a dancewear store in the city of Birmingham that could supply an ever-growing dance market with the need for everything a dancer would not only want, but also be expected to have,” she explains.

A Samford graduate, Buddy started out as a pharmacist, but missed being around people, so he quit his job and sold cars to make ends meet while he figured out his next step. He opened a State Farm office on Palisades, then added Applause to his business portfolio. Katie’s mom, Cindy, graduated from LSU and became director, creator, and choreographer of The Star Spangled Girls, a precision dance team that is a part of the Homewood Patriot Marching Band. After receiving her master’s degree from The University of Alabama, she added dance as a PE elective in the State of Alabama, which allowed students to choose it over a typical high school PE class.

“I sold my first leotard at Applause when I was 7 years old and then continued to work there every afternoon in middle school, walking down from HMS to the store, and then I would go to dance class at night,” says Katie, who danced from age two-and-a-half all the way through college, was a Star Spangled Girl from tenth through twelfth grades, and will—given the chance—still dance today.

“I worked through high school when I wasn’t busy with Spangle and Show Choir. I went to The University of Alabama for a year-and-a-half to study marketing, before returning to UAB. When I was 19, my parents lost their long-time manager at the store and asked me if I would be interested

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in helping while finishing school. I started going to school early in the morning and after 6 p.m. and ran the store during the day. I graduated in marketing, fully intending to go into advertising, but I had completely fallen in love with Applause and my customers. I decided to stay and take over the store for good. My parents were elated to know it would stay in the family and in good hands.” Today, Katie handles taxes, payroll, licensing, advertising, HR, and any ownership-related issues. Since moving to the lake with her husband, Brian, Katie drives in several times a week and works from home the other days. “In the last couple of years, I have been able to completely turn over or share the responsibilities of ordering new inventory, deciding what to carry, inventory and restock issues, hiring and training new employees, and any immediate issues that may arise if I am not available with Erica, my manager, who has been with us since she was in college at UAB,” she says.

One secret to the success of Applause is their commitment to hiring great staff—specifically dancers. “To state it simply, the reason we hire dancers is because people sell what they are most passionate about. It also means we start with confidant salespeople, because they know the products, they wear them, and they can talk to a parent honestly—especially a parent who has never danced, which is a majority of our clientele.” That knowledge and a no-pressure atmosphere keep customers coming back. Applause staff doesn’t work on commission. “We want you to love what you are buying and only buy what you really want and need,” says Katie. “Our original intent since my parents opened the store was to always staff it with dancers because we wanted the people who danced in the merchandise every day; they know best whether something is a worthy product.”

The merchandise at Applause covers a wide spectrum. They offer all styles of dance, gymnastics, and majorette wear for girls, boys, men, and women sizes toddler to plus. “We try to carry many of the brands that we hear mentioned by our dancers,” says Katie. “We also try to offer a wide range of pricing to cover dancers from novice to professional. We stay away from pricey convention dancewear because those are special purchases that don’t happen when dancers are stopping in for new dance shoes. That’s one of the reasons we’re able to keep so much inventory that dancers need every day.”

Katie’s hope is that Applause continues offering what they always have: a little girl’s first pair of ballet shoes, followed by her first pair of pointe shoes and her brother’s first pair of tap shoes, then tights for high school dance team and college. “And then the brother who took tap brings in his daughter to get her first pair of ballet shoes and the cycle continues,” she says. “Because every single person who walked in the door loved shopping here.” She is keenly aware of her good fortune to be a part of an incredible family business. “It is even more rewarding to tell people that we hit the 40-year mark and see their reactions. They’ll say, “Well that sounds about right. I’m shopping for my daughter and my mom brought me here when I was her age.” And when I tell them that I sold my first leotard at 7, they say, “Wow! Your parents opened this—how cool is that?”

Her parents’ fingerprints are all over the business still today. “My dad had been involved pretty much daily in making sure our store was always running at its best as far as making sure our lightbulbs were changed out, lending a hand and a truck to go to a shoe fitting, and as my constant who came by to check on me first and then our staff. He died suddenly and unexpectedly on May 8, 2014, just a few hours after spending lunchtime at our store. We laughed and talked about all our people, almost as if he was checking things off the list before he had to go. That will forever be my memory of him, that infectious laughter and smile as he kissed me on the cheek, hugged me tight, and said, “I love you my KK!” I realized that night how blessed my family was—we got to see each other every single day.”

“Applause is synonymous with Dance in Homewood,” Katie continues. “I remember stepping off the bus for a football game when my sons were in high school—we were about an hour away—and I was wearing an Applause shirt. A man had looked my direction many times, and finally he walked over to me and said, “That’s the dancewear store in Homewood, isn’t it?” He had brought his daughter to our store and loved our place. When I tell people what I do, they always say it’s the dancewear place in Alabama. That is what my parents set out to build 40 years ago, and I think that is what makes Applause special. It’s built on a love of dance and our effort to make every dancer feel cared for.”

Applause Dancewear is located at 1629 Oxmoor Road in Homewood. They are open Monday–Thursday 10 a.m.–6 p.m. and Friday–Saturday 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; (205) 871-7837 or applausedancewear.net.