Style make-over

Many experts in the fashion and beauty industry such as 55 year-old Robert Berberian, owner of Roberts Salon in Belmont, believe looking good makes you feel good and the right clothing and hair style can help men and women accomplish this.
“When you’re 50 you might not look 40, but you want to look good for your age. A 50-year-old woman can look damn good for 50,” said Berberian who has owned his salon for 31 years. Yolanda Cellucci, 75, of Lincoln, also known as the dress diva, former owner of bridal shop Yolanda Enterprises in Waltham, is one of his best customers.
Berberian has worked side by side with his wife, Elizabeth, 51, for 24 years. “I keep him young, he keeps me young,” she said, adding the anti aging collagen treatment facials she gets from their staff aesthetician, Maria Bartolomeu, has also helped her skin rejuvenate.
For her wardrobe, Berberian prefers to shop in smaller boutiques with good, personalized service and likes to wear youthful, conservative, but an eclectic combination of clothes that look good on her. “Just because it’s in style, doesn’t mean it’s going to look good on you,” said Berberian.
Family owned clothing store, Gould’s, located at 260 Great Road, has been in business for over 75 years, serving men and women 35 and up. Owner Marvin Gould, who has been in the business for 38 years, said the biggest mistake men and women fifty plus make is to resist buying for their body shape which changes as it ages. “You don’t wear a size, you wear a fit,” said Gould.
His father George and Uncle David opened the first store in Clinton, Massachusetts in 1934. Gould now co-owns the Acton store with his brothers Arthur and Lester.
His dedicated staff of over 20 years is all trained to be personal stylists. Pat Goddard, a buyer and salesperson for Gould’s since 1991, said she buys with an eye for their customers. “I know what they are looking for. If skirts are too short, they aren’t going to sell. I won’t buy the baby doll look. Our customer does not want to look pregnant again,” said Goddard.
Clothing changes as lifestyles change, added Goddard which is why she always finds out what her customer’s lifestyle needs are. “If they are not working, they might buy more jeans and use dressy sweaters with accessories,” she said.
Gould’s customer Tammie Burns, 51, of Acton, said she feels more self-conscious about what she wears now that she is over 50. “I’m more interested in wearing what I think is more flattering to my body than what is the style. I’m not comfortable with that,” said Burns.
Nordstrom is another retail store which is family owned. It started out as a Seattle shoe store in 1928 run by brothers Everett and Elmer Nordstrom. Johanna Easter, personal stylist manager for Nordstrom in Burlington, takes great pride in her customer relationships which has made her successful in her 8 ½ year career with the company. She starts by giving her clients a questionnaire to learn more about their lifestyle needs and personal taste.
“The critical questions for the more mature customer I work with are about their lifestyle. Are they really active, physically active, do they attend a lot of black tie events? Typically, they may have a museum or art gallery openings, they are on a lot of committees. They need to make a statement in their wardrobe,” said Easter.
It is also important to accentuate the positive parts of your body and minimize an area that isn’t so great, she added.
“If a female customer has a larger chest, she should wear an open neck line or v-neck. If she has a smaller waist, she will want to accentuate that by adding a belt. If she is petite, it is great to be monochromatic; wear all one color and accentuate the top with a great printed sweater or jacket. It gives a great illusion of elongating the body,” said Easter.
For her male customers over 50, Easter said weight in the belly tends to be an issue. She always makes sure she puts them in something slimming, not tight-fitting or too loose and baggy. For pants, she would choose flat front, not pleated.
Easter has four personal stylists whom she manages. She trains them how to set up a fitting room so customers do not feel overwhelmed. “We set it up so it is appealing visually, not over stimulating. We want to make sure the fitting room experience goes as smoothly as possible,” said Easter.
The personal stylist services at Nordstrom and Gould’s are complimentary. Alterations are done on site and most are free of charge. Both stores said they will work within any budget.