Hennessey had, at 16, a black-clad SoHo gallerist phase, while McCollister had a “European,” fake-fur-coated, equestrian booted, lace-hosiery moment. When they met Aldrich in Los Angeles as teens, she arrived in a vintage Chanel mini-skirted suit which came from her journalist mom via an editor acquaintance renowned for her love of Chanel. Since then, they’ve gone on to study and act, putting on stage plays (like Jean Genet’s The Maids) and creating films. But it’s the shared love of what clothing can express that made them join forces and open Surrender Dorothy.
Arabella Aldrich, Leah Hennessey, and Ruby McCollister.
Photo: Courtesy of Surrender Dorothy
The location, likewise, couldn’t be more them: It occupies a gloriously dusty, vividly hued floor in a building that belongs to a Tony Award-winning actor who was mentored by Richard Burton. It even has its own mini theater which said actor created for his actress wife, and it’s still there, on the floor above them. Surrender Dorothy as a retail space is full of surprises, from the Mondo Mondo scents showcased in vintage dolls house and the sofas strewn with Jess Maybury quilts (available for sale) to the pulsating green walls, which, says Aldrich, were inspired by the Emerald City.
Dust aside, it all feels like a breath of fresh air, done just for the love of creating something special and unique. Surrender Dorothy is as close to the late, lamented concept store of old as we’ll get these days, only without the self-conscious (or indeed, pretentious) ‘lifestyle’ connotations. The store, says Aldrich, is “an opportunity that’s almost this intimate way to interact with someone’s art piece. You get to enter their minds. I love that we can create that kind of interaction here; that stores can do that. It’s the coolest thing.”