Dalaga is one busy Lady
Dalaga owners Mary and Michelle Mangiliman flank ‘What Not to Wear’ host Clinton Kelly
From August 1 to 31, the Filipino-owned Dalaga boutique – with stores in Brooklyn and Soho – is the featured window display at the Philippine Center on Fifth Avenue. And on August 14, sisters and owners Mary and Michelle Mangiliman will be featured in the TLC show “What Not To Wear” where the show’s guest gets to shop at Dalaga. The hosts, Stacy London and Clinton Kelly, helped the guest pick out clothing for the her new look. Michelle and Mary did not participate in the makeover and are not featured by name in the show, according to the store’s marketing director Elizabeth Hull. “However, Mary and Michelle might make a brief appearance as the guest makes her purchases,” she told The FilAm.
“It was such a thrill and we have been waiting with baited breathe for the show to air,” the sisters write on their Facebook page. “The time has finally come and on August 14th Greenpoint will hit the small screen.”
Dalaga, which is known for its eclectic style, has been invited by the Philippine Consulate to be featured in the “Best of the Philippines on Fifth Avenue” series. The consulate said Dalaga was being honored with a Fifth Avenue display because of their “engagement in the fashion community and for being excellent examples of Filipino-American entrepreneurs.”
The Dalaga window will feature a rotating display of what the store has to offer highlighting its fall collections. The window tells the story of Dalaga’s journey and an original design by Michelle will be featured for the first two weeks. Dalaga’s beginnings are rooted in the Philippines where the sisters ‘parents were born and raised.
“Even though we grew up outside of Washington, DC, the Philippines was always present in our lives,” said Michelle. “Our parents never let us forget where we came from and they instilled in us the warm, welcoming and hard-working spirit of the Filipino people.”
That spirit plus the magic of their mother’s closet led Mary and Michelle down the road to fashion. Since they can remember, the inseparable twosome played dress-up and shop in their mother’s closet, merchandising her shoes and dresses and paying for their favorite items in socks as substitute currency. “Looking back on our childhood, it makes perfect sense that this is what we were destined to do. Even when we were 5 or 6 we were business partners and it hasn’t changed since,” said Mary.
“Dalaga” – the Filipino term for “Lady” – is a word affectionately used by their father when referring to his daughters as they grew up.
After many pop-up shops and sample sales, they opened their first shop in 2006 at 150 Franklin St. in Brooklyn. Celebrating six years in business, two kids, a signature fragrance, and the recent opening of a second store in SoHo, the Mangiliman sisters are thrilled to be featured as female examples of Filipino-American entrepreneurship at the Philippine Consulate. Said Michelle, “We hope to inspire all dalagas to follow their dream.”
The closing reception will be on August 30 from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Philippine Center Lobby. Mary, Michelle and the featured designers will be in attendance and a handpicked selection of Dalaga items will be available that evening.
