Jackson Free Press

Ever get the feeling that all clothes look the same? Ever worry that you'll show up at that big party in the same dress three other people are wearing? Are you searching for somewhere that has sales year round, not just in July and January? If so, Private Collection is the answer you've been searching for.

Private Collection started as a consignment store 18 years ago when current owner Nicole Davis' mother, Kathy Barnes, started the store in Canton Mart Square in Jackson as a hobby. When Davis graduated from Ole Miss in 1991 with a degree in fashion merchandising, she began helping her mother full time. In 2004, her mother gave Davis the business to run full time, and Davis moved the shop to Madison.

Davis also pared down the store's inventory to sell women's clothes, shoes, jewelry, purses, candles and Debbie Dabbs cookbooks. In the past few years, designer jeans have become a popular part of Private Collection's inventory.

"If somebody eight years ago would've said you could sell jeans for $65, I would've been like, 'You're kidding, no way,'" Davis says.

Designer shoes and handbags are also among Private Collection's inventory, as well as clothing for women of any age and style. Davis says she does not have a particular method for choosing the store's inventory; she has just developed an eye for what customers will buy over the years.

Davis has a few tips for first-time consignment shoppers. She suggests coming with plenty of time to spend.

"If you've got 10 minutes, you will quickly realize that's not long enough," Davis says. With each item being the only of its kind in the store, finding a style and size that suits sometimes takes a bit of time.

Private Collection also tries to help out the local community, with several shelves set aside with clothes that Davis will donate. Recently, she has donated to Junior Auxiliary of Madison, Matt's House, and the Esther Stewart Buford Foundation and churches.

"Not long ago, I had a girl come in and she was shopping, and she came up with her stuff to buy and said, 'I'm so glad I found this store. My house just burned,'" Davis says. "And I just dumped (clothes) into garbage bags and said, 'Here you go.'"