A Japanesque recipe for success

A spell in Japan lead Betsy Clark to inspiration and a thriving business back home in the US.

"How to take home the highlight of my 80-Days-Around-the- World trip?" was a question that puzzled Betsy Clark over twenty years ago, as a post-graduate who travelled to Asia. Fascinated by Japan, Clark dreamed of "bringing back my own ideas and thoughts - the touches, scents, and sights of what I experienced," she said. When she re-visited her favourite island with a friend a few years later, she had her answer: open a boutique in Bethany Beach, Delaware, in the United States and name it Japanesque.

Today, this bustling boutique is an informal ambassador of Japanese art and clothing in a resort town frequented by the diverse populations of Washington DC, New York City, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. "It's a small gem of the Orient," said Clark of her boutique. Incense and candles perfume the air, chimes and gongs resound, and visual delights in a cascade of evening gowns and a cache of silk slippers create a shopping experience that is as exciting as it is therapeutic.

Clark chose Bethany Beach, the fastest growing resort town on the East Coast of the United States, for its ocean aesthetic. She established the boutique in former lifeguard quarters, making it "the wildest thing that ever happened in the county," she said.

"Neighbors asked ‘who is this crazy girl?'" recalled Clark, who endured endless speculation about her foreign deliveries and unique window displays. Yet what was construed as Clark's entrepreneurial madness had a distinct method.

Inventory of superb quality and exquisite design, culled directly from the streets of Osaka and Tokyo, won an immediate following. Many delighted in purchasing what they read about in books or saw in movies, but most had never seen such treasures.

Clark could barely keep stocked and the yukata (cotton traditional robes) she had selected for their versatility at the beach, were the first to go. A successful first summer funded her third trip to Japan.

No longer beholden to whirlwind tours or the quirky hours of freelance English teaching Clark "had time to re-think, re-generate, and re-buy," she said. Her treasure budget grew as did her vision for the boutique. She realized she could extend its theme in a number of directions and committed to sourcing more art. "The art, that is where the love is," she explained. Lovingly arranged on wood shelves and bamboo racks are a collection of artefacts that range from "kimono (traditional silk robes), kokechi (wooden dolls), and kenzan (anchors for Japanese flower arrangements) . . . these show how much there is to learn," Clark enthused - "without even going to a museum!"

A knowledgeable staff tends to these informal exhibits, warmly encouraging a hands-on experience. Fans and origami paper scatter within reach, just as a calligraphy board with brush and water are ready for character practice. "These are things I would have myself," Clark said. "But you can't have it all … what makes me happiest is to see it go out the door with the right person." Today her boutique stands as a proud symbol for the resort town, appearing on maps, postcards, and guides of the region. The old lifeguard quarters have transformed into a sprawling complex of shops and apartments known as Bethany Station, as famous for its authentic grey clapboard and copper roof as it is for Japanesque's Zen garden.

Of a Japanesque ensemble or objet d'art, Clark said; "You should feel like you have something unique and are not going to find anywhere else. You're going to get loads of compliments … I always say your nicest compliment becomes mine." Clark's travel experience, keen business savvy, and altruism for a world that she knows to be more small than big pass the compliment on - Japanese art and clothing receive the ultimate accolade in admirers half a world away.

Text & photos: Una Funk