'Androgynous' Boutique Seeks to Bring an Edge to Wyckoff

Androgyny has been turning heads in Wyckoff, and not just for its name.

The clothing shop that opened on Franklin Avenue three weeks ago is the culmination of a month of renovations to bring the former office space an extreme makeover, adorning the new boutique's interior with pop art and rock & roll paraphernalia—and the clothing to match.

“I try to be a little provocative, a little edgy,” owner Christina DeCarlo says of the store, which she hopes will fill a void she found in Wyckoff of clothing stores catering to a younger, trendier demographic.

The store offers both men's and women's clothing, informal wear designed for an alternative fashion sense.

“I’ve had a decent turnaround. People walking by at night are definitely into peaking and seeing the uniqueness,” DeCarlo says. “It’s different for this area, it’s not really expected.”

DeCarlo, who spent 12 years in retail and earned a fashion studies degree from Montclair State University before setting off on her own, brings in small label men’s clothes from New York and women’s clothes from Los Angeles to create a shopping experience true to its name, where the sections “bounce off each other’s style.”

The goal, she says, is to bring a piece of the trendy shopping scene associated with New York City to the Jersey suburbs at a more affordable price, but—for the ever-evolving fashionista—maintaining the boutique culture with a fresh, weekly rotating stock.

A Washington Township native, DeCarlo previously managed Sweet Feet in Ridgewood, and when she scoped out Bergen County towns for a store of her own, she says, she found the township could use a clothing store with an alternative edge.

But don’t let that edge scare you off—despite DeCarlo’s rock and roll streak, she’s looking to be a mainstay in the township.

“Wyckoff’s just a nice area," she says. "The people here, the businesses that I’ve introduced myself to—everyone’s welcomed me with open arms."