Sue Sartor Opens Her Second-Ever Store in Dallas’ Snider Plaza

In an Instagram world where every retail space feels intentionally over-designed to be *a moment,* the Sue Sartor store in Dallas is charming and unpretentious. Alongside simple latticework and hung orchids, the brand’s signature Indian block-printed dresses rightfully serve as the main attraction at its newly opened perch in Snider Plaza.

On Tuesday, March 19, local influencer Mary Hafner co-hosted a dinner party with Sue Sartor to formally welcome the Louisiana-based designer and her eponymous women’s clothing brand to Dallas. The brand’s new shop is its second brick-and-mortar location. (The first is the flagship on Magazine Street in New Orleans.)

“Opening a store in Dallas was a no-brainer!” Sartor said without hesitation. A former Dallasite herself, Sartor lived here during the 1990s while working as a visual merchandiser for Calvin Klein Women’s Collection. 

“I’ve always adored the community, and I especially appreciate how Dallas women share an affinity for color and joyful dressing,” Sartor praised.

It helps that Dallas is the brand’s largest market. It should come as no surprise; Dallas women love a pretty dress, and that’s Sartor’s bread and butter.

A few days before the event, I popped into the store to select something to wear to the dinner. Calming coastal shades of blue and green, as well as feminine hues of soft pink, dominate the color palette. I, however, beelined to an orange and red “Vintage Poppy” print (trimmed in electric cobalt blue!) that I felt certain no one else would select. 

The night of the party, Hafner (in an ethereal white silk mini) and Sartor greeted guests in the shop for a sentimental champagne toast before the well-dressed flock (most of whom wore an iteration of the kaftan-inspired Flounce Dress™) merrily paraded across the street for a seated dinner at new neighborhood jewel, Zest Cafe. 

Inside Zest, two long tables were adorned with fresh-from-the-garden florals by Christy Doramus, including potted daffodils and hyacinth, as well as block-printed napkins, seagrass placemats, and stemware from Estelle Colored Glass.

The intimate guest list laid the foundation for a lively conversation between bites of ahi tuna lettuce wraps and edamame hummus. (I particularly enjoyed talking fashion and personal style with stylist Abby Hernandez. We speculated where Alessandro Michele would go next and now have our answer: Valentino.)

The effervescent Hafner toasted to the lady of the hour. “Sue is such a light in this world, and her beautiful dresses are a staple in my closet,” she shared. 

Guests in attendance included Kate Bowman, Cristina Lynch Bird, Catalina Gonzalez Jorba, Amy Havins, Kimberly Schlegel Whitman, Krystal Schlegel Davis, Meghan Guffey, and Ashley Robertson.