Ever since they were children, Morgan Genty and Caroline King dreamt about creating their own fashion business. Their dream came alive in the form of Vestique, an online boutique the two N.C. State alumae opened less than a month ago.

“Basically we both really, really loved fashion from the get-go. Once you get to college and you’re trying to choose a major, it’s kind of a hectic period in your life,” Genty said. “We’re both avid online-shoppers and online boutique-shoppers, so we took things we liked from other online boutiques and boutiques in the area and adapted them to form Vestique.”

King said they got their kick-start in Atlanta at the Atlanta Apparel Market.

“We went to the Atlanta Apparel Market in August and purchased the majority of our merchandise. That gave us the opportunity to meet some designers and develop relationships with them,” King said.

When deciding which pieces to add to the collection, Genty said they go off what they personally like, but they are also huge trend-watchers.

“We follow a bunch of fashion blogs, we obviously follow celebrities and any other trends that we see in the fashion world, and then we look for those items at an affordable price to bring it to you,” Genty said. “We do a lot of canvassing, then we choose items that we like and that work well.”

Vestique is unique in that every item they offer costs less than $100.

“We’re really focusing on making things affordable, especially with the economy the way it is. We want people to be able to shop and have an opportunity to have the latest trends but at affordable prices,” King said. “Whereas a lot of boutique shops are expensive … we’re giving them the opportunity to get those same looks but at a much cheaper price.”

Genty said another way Vestique is different from other online retailers is they are available for trunk shows.

“We’ll bring our product to you. We’ll bring them and let people try them on and touch them and buy them. ”

Genty and King avoid drop-shipping customers by storing their products and shipping the items directly to customers.

“We have an inventory of every item that we sell so we’re able to ship same day to most of our customers. And actually, if they’re in the same area or if they’re students or something, they’ll likely get it the next day,” King said.

While the two own and operate Vestique, they also work day jobs. With most of the business being run online, Genty and King are able to balance their workload.

“Most of the designers have websites and we order from their website and we can order new things as they get new items, so it’s a great opportunity for us because we can do a little online shopping from our designers in between market,” King said.

Their website was designed by Genty’s husband, and features dresses, tops, bottoms, outerwear, accessories and jewelry.

“One of the reasons we were able to start Vestique was because my husband is a web-developer. We designed it, but he brought our designs to fruition. His company helped us get everything the way it is, the way you see it right now,” Genty said.

Genty and King said their education at the University gave them valuable skills needed to start and run a business like Vestique.

“I was a business and marketing education major. While I’m not teaching, I was able to gain a lot of skills as far as marketing. I had entrepreneur classes at N.C. State, and was well-informed as a student on starting a business and all different types of marketing tactics,” King said. “I’ve definitely been able to bring that knowledge to the table with Vestique.”

Genty was a communication major and said her classes and background in public relations are used to spread the word about Vestique.

“Caroline [King] has helped so much with the business side and I’m helping with the PR side. We don’t have a huge budget; we don’t have a budget for advertising at all right now. PR and any free and cheap marketing have really been beneficial for us,” Genty said.

Although the business has only been open for four weeks, several items have already sold out. The two owners are excited about its success.

“We’ve done really well our first four weeks, better than we ever expected that we would do. We’re just hoping to keep the momentum going and get the word out to more people,” Genty said. “We can’t wait to see how people from N.C. State take to this.”

Vestique will host a fashion show Wednesday, Nov. 10 at Foster’s American Grille in Cameron Village. The show begins at 8 p.m.