Buh-Bye, Club Libby Lu

There's plenty about the state of our economy to lament and plenty of stores that are going out of business that we may feel sorry for -- even miss.

But there's one that's closing that's simply a good riddance: that's Club Libby Lu. More than a year and a half ago, we had a spirited discussion about the store, which was founded in 2000 by Mary Drolet, bought by Saks Inc. and expanded to 98 stores around the country. Club Libby Lu stores -- which ultimately proved unprofitable for Saks -- will all be closed by the end of January, according to Club Libby Lu's Web site.

Last spring, a commenter who identified herself as Drolet described the experience at Club Libby Lu as this:

"Club Libby Lu is a place -- first and foremost -- where little girls can engage their imaginations and have fun being a girl. Yes, that involves playing dress-up, getting their hair done and the application of a little makeup. Those are the means to an end, though, with the end being how these activities make a little girl feel."

The problem was that the club's version of dress-up involved hooking girls as young as 3 on glittery tube tops, tight pants, boas, nail polish, lip gloss, tiaras and runway modeling. Princesses and pop stars -- hence sex -- were in. So, dress-up was cool and fun, if it was sexy. No pilots or doctors or astronauts or firefighters to dress as in this place.

Drolet's dream of a place where girls can spread their imaginations is a great one. Now, girls everywhere will just have to make up those dreams themselves while "borrowing" from Mom and Dad's closets and bathroom drawers.

Club Libby Lu's demise has pleased at least some in the blogosphere:

Writes Greg Allen at Daddytypes.com:

"So awesome. Club Libby Lu is closing all its stores. ... When I first discovered Club Libby Lu as a new parent, I dreaded about someday having to fight the superficial, idiotic, pop culture-worshipping chain's impending influence on my daughter. But then after a snotty little CLL employee chewed me out, I ran the numbers and saw that I didn't need to worry: the Club Libby Lu concept was failing in slow motion and would only get easier, not harder, to avoid."

That's a far different impression of the store than the one commenter Drolet portrayed on the blog last year:

"If you teach your daughters that they have to look good to succeed and that outer beauty is what matters most, that's what they'll believe.

But if you teach and show them they can be anything they want to be, no matter what, and that nothing is impossible, then that's what they'll hang on to. And if you take them to Club Libby Lu, they'll have fun, they'll feel empowered and good about themselves, and they'll love you even more for it."

How do you feel about Club Libby Lu's closing? Do you wonder whether something new will try to fill its "void?"

By Stacey Garfinkle | December 5, 2008; 6:30 AM ET | Category: Elementary Schoolers , Preschoolers , Tweens

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