FENWICK ISLAND – Wander with style.
That is what co-owner Michelle Gemberling says Indigo Octopus is all about.
“It’s all about travel and exploring,” she said, “being at the beach and doing it all with style.”
Located along Coastal Highway in Fenwick, Indigo Octopus, a boutique store, offers customers a unique selection of clothes, shoes, accessories and beauty products.
Gemberling, who has 20 years of experience in the retail industry, said each item found in the shop is curated with care.
“We are a local business and we really strive to offer a great assortment for the community,” she said, “to find something here that they can’t find anywhere else and stuff they can touch and feel in a brick-and-mortar store that they can only find online.”
Gemberling defines Indigo Octopus as an “elevated beach lifestyle shop.” Customers can find dresses, cardigans, printed T-shirts, jeans, jewelry and more.
“My vision for the store is to do everything for the beach, but in a very elevated and contemporary way …,” she said. “I’m inspired by the beach muse, but at the same time it’s sophisticated enough for the city dweller.”
Gemberling said the elevated beach concept works well for the area, as many summer residents and visitors originate from metropolitan areas.
“Most of them are from Baltimore or Washington, D.C., or New York,” she said. “So they really loved the concept of the shop.”
An interior area of the Indigo Octopus boutique is pictured.
After spending 17 years as divisional merchandise manager of apparel and swim at South Moon Under, Gemberling took a leap of faith and partnered with her husband, Charlie Groom, and Quiet Storm Surf Shop owners Bill and Nancy Dreibelbis to open Indigo Octopus – a name she derived from her expertise in denim and her favorite sea creature – earlier this year. The store currently resides in the space formerly occupied by Quiet Storm Surf Shop.
“I thought it over and we partnered up and a concept was born,” she said. “That was back in April of 2017, so we put this together in about four weeks.”
Since then, Gemberling said business at Indigo Octopus has grown.
This week, for example, Indigo Octopus launched its first e-commerce site, shopindigooctopus.com, where customers can purchase store items and a curated collection of vintage clothing items like Chanel and Hermes.
Gemberling said the website is the first step in expanding the business even further.
“We also see the store growing into other locations in the future,” she said.
Indigo Octopus is open Thursday through Monday. Gemberling encourages customers to visit the store’s Instagram and Facebook pages for more information or to view the store’s selection.
