Amy Schuler has always had her own style – an interest encouraged by her dad, Frank. “I was raised by my dad and he let me dress myself,” says the Bardstown Road shopkeeper. “I’d wear stripes and polka dots, and I loved to experiment.”
More than a decade later, Schuler introduced her style to the world when she opened Urban Attic, a Bardstown Road boutique that may be the most well organized attic in the Highlands.
“I always loved thrift shopping, but it got to be so frustrating,” she says. “I wanted a boutique style in which someone who wasn’t quite as comfortable (with thrift shopping) could come in and find items.”
This playful mix-and-match (or, in some cases, artfully mismatched) philosophy initially took Schuler to the University of Kentucky, where she studied merchandising, apparel and textiles. “It was a business-focused program, which for me was just excellent,” she says. Following a seven-year stint in retail management, Schuler opened Urban Attic, which celebrated its third anniversary in October. 
Schuler’s background gave her the expertise to look before she leapt. “I scoped out pretty much every area in Louisville,” she says of the search for the ideal place for her shop – walking into every store that caught her eye and driving up and down all the main and minor drags. “I just had this vision of a store that I wanted, where people with all tastes and preferences could shop.” That vision became a reality on Bardstown Road before she even set eyes on the shop’s location. “I just remember being on Bardstown Road, and there’s such an eclectic style. You see vintage outfits and trendy wear. There’s just a range and it felt like home.”
This range spans decades. “We’ll take anything up from the ‘50s to stuff that’s out this year,” Schuler says. “We’re not really specific as to more vintage or more modern; I love the idea of someone taking a vintage piece and mixing it with a really trendy item.” But whatever the era, Schuler and the rest of her five-person staff are sticklers for quality. “The items have to be almost in perfect condition,” she says of the casual clothes, shoes, jewelry and accessories that can be bought, sold and traded at Urban Attic. And the brands run the gamut, too. “I think when I get phone calls from people asking what kind of stuff we take in, they wonder if we’re brand specific. We’re mostly quality specific. The brands range from H&M to Anthropologie to BCBG Max Azria.”
In addition to what customers bring in, Schuler also uses her store to create a showcase for a handful of carefully selected designers. “We have a couple of local jewelry lines, and a candle line, Bear Elephant, that uses recycled wine bottles to hold their candles. They smell fantastic,” she says. The store also donates five cents to Brightside for every shopping bag that a customer declines; last year, 10,000 bags left behind translated to a $500 contribution toward keeping the metro green. “Nickel by nickel, it all adds up.” 
And so does all that history, tracing back to Schuler’s early days of sartorial experimentation and the family that encouraged her. “My dad’s been an amazing support system,” she says. “Without him, I wouldn’t be here.”
Urban Attic is located at 1608 Bardstown Road, at the intersection of Bonnycastle Avenue. The store is open Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call (502) 454-8181 or visit www.shopurbanattic.com.
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