Women in the Texas Hill Country no longer need to drive 45 minutes to San Antonio for contemporary designer clothing. Kelli Hull, a veteran and native Texan, has opened Monkee's of Fair Oaks Ranch, a locally owned boutique in the Lemon Creek Ranch development near Fair Oaks Ranch and Boerne.
Hull, who moved back to Texas after nearly 20 years in Washington, D.C., identified a significant gap in the local market. "It was really apparent to me that we had a fairly substantive gap in the market," Hull said. "If you wanted to wear contemporary designers, there was nowhere to get it in this area." The boutique, store #8 in Texas and roughly #67 nationwide, is part of the North Carolina-based Monkee's franchise, known for carrying big contemporary designer names in small, neighborhood storefronts.
The franchise model provides collective buying power, allowing individual store owners to access major showrooms in New York. "Someone like me - my store wasn't even open yet - could walk into a major showroom in New York and buy for the season ahead," Hull explained. This enables Monkee's of Fair Oaks Ranch to offer a curated selection of contemporary designers across a wide range of price points, catering to customers from day to night without leaving the Hill Country.
Hull's background includes nearly 20 years in government contracting, advising private companies on business with special operations and intelligence communities. She met her husband, Chris, an Army Reserve officer, in D.C., and the family moved to Texas about a year ago. As a veteran-owned business in the San Antonio area, known as Military City USA, the boutique plans to support the military community, with more details to come.
The shopping experience at Monkee's of Fair Oaks Ranch is intentionally personal. "A lot of women just need someone to say, 'You're beautiful, that looks good on you - but I think we can do even better,'" Hull said. "When you look good, you feel good, and that projects out. It's my solemn vow that I'll never let anyone leave Monkee's of Fair Oaks Ranch in something that doesn't look phenomenal on them."
The boutique is located at monkeesoffairoaks.com and can be followed on Instagram at @monkeesoffairoaks for the latest brands and arrivals, with additional updates on Facebook and TikTok. Online shopping is planned to launch in 2027.
For Hull, opening the boutique fulfilled a bucket-list career path, addressing the frustrations she and other local women faced in finding contemporary fashion nearby. The store's opening marks a significant addition to the Hill Country retail landscape, providing a much-needed option for women seeking designer clothing without the long commute.
