A New Rectortown Shop With a Worthy Mission

A New Rectortown Shop With a Worthy Mission

By Ali Patusky

Entrepreneurs Tara and Ben Wegdam’s latest shop has been set up specifically not to make a profit, and, in fact, to allow its vast array of merchandise to walk out the door without a single dollar changing hands.

It’s called The Fig Leaf Clothes Closet, the newest addition to the Wegdams’ collection of Northern Virginia and Maryland shops that include four in Middleburg alone—Creme de la Creme, Brick and Mortar, Zest, and loulou. The Fig Leaf is located in a building next to the Rectortown Methodist Church, and the couple, who live nearby, wanted to give back to the community through a shop of a different kind.

“It’s open to anyone in need,” Tara Wegdam said. “We just want to support our community in something that we know how to do, which is run a store.”

The Fig Leaf offers its clients some new and plenty of slightly-used clothing, shoes and much more for children, teenagers and adults. There’s no charge. For anything. It’s open every Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon and the inspiration came from a Netflix show called “Maid.”

Geri Coulter volunteers on Saturdays to handle the front counter at the Fig Leaf Closet at the Rectortown Methodist Church.

Photo by Leonard Shapiro

“It’s a true story about how a woman who went to a woman’s shelter and was so grateful to be able to come into a store and pick what she needed rather than what people were just giving her,” Tara said. “Just because you give somebody something, it might not really be what they need.”

In addition to offering a helping hand to many of its clients, the store is also a receptacle for those who have too much and are looking to downsize their closets.

“I think we all have an abundance of stuff, and it doesn’t matter who you are,” Tara said. “A lot of the time you just need to get rid of it, but you don’t want to throw it away, you don’t want it in the landfill, and you really don’t know who to give it to. So if you give it to us, we will display it, and hopefully somebody will come and pick it out for themselves.”

Donations can be made at any time to a parking lot storage building located at the church on Rectortown Road. Additionally, those interested in volunteering to help staff the store or donating monetarily can visit the church’s website and click on the “Fig Leaf” tab to sign up.

The goal for the store this year is to “spread the word,” Tara said. “We want everyone to know that we’re there, and they’re welcome, and it’s small. We just want to help, and we’d like to reach more people. We have customers now, but we could have a lot more customers, and if we did have more customers, we would add more days.”

Rectortown resident Geri Coulter was volunteering behind the counter on a recent Saturday and said a number of people had already come in. Three women were checking out the racks and shelves in the women’s section of the shop as she spoke, and Geri said the word is starting to get out.

“We opened in April,” she said, “and it’s been a little slow, but things are starting to pick up. We have a lot of volunteers, and we’re getting people from all over. We’re doing Saturdays, so if you have a job during the week, you can come in and not miss any work. And people really appreciate what we’re doing.”