9-11 widows open children’s clothing boutique.
By: Josh Appelbaum
The Pied Piper Kids boutique opened its doors on Cranbury Day, Sept. 11, three years after owners Patty Ryan and Teresa Cunningham lost their husbands in the attacks on the World Trade Center.
The shop, located at 60 N. Main St., had been a custom clothes and embroidery business housed in a 8-by-10 room at the rear of the building, but became a full-service shop with a storefront in September, offering high-end wares and accessories after it took over the former location of Dandeline in September, expanding three-fold.
The two women, both residents of West Windsor, met at a support group for families of victims of Sept. 11.
Their business is a testament to the support the women received following the death of Michael Cunningham, a Euro Brokers employee, and John Ryan, an employee of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc. Both men worked in 2 World Trade Center.
"We were both sitting in the group, saying, ‘What are we going to do now?’" Ms. Cunningham said.
Knowing each other for less than a year, the pair said it was fate that they found each other and they have used the business as an opportunity to start over.
Previously, Ms. Ryan has worked as a substitute teacher at Dutch Neck School in West Windsor. She also ran an at-home child-care business. Ms. Cunningham, according to her business partner, is a master seamstress of clothing for children and adults.
Both women also have sales backgrounds, as Ms. Cunningham worked in finance for 11 years in banking and brokerage and Ms. Ryan worked as a sales associate on Wall Street. Ms. Cunningham said their experiences in sales and finance have helped in running the store.
"Once you’ve worked in sales I sold bonds you can sell anything," she said.
Ms. Ryan’s experience in child-care she has three children, 17-year-old twins and a 20-year-old attending Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and Ms. Cunningham’s flare for fashion, design and clothes-making made a kids boutique a no-brainer.
"My girls are very fashion-minded, and Teresa’s a very talented seamstress she makes wonderful custom items and also does embroidery," Ms. Ryan said.
Ms. Cunningham’s 3-year-old son was just 12 days old when his father died.
Ms. Ryan said she and Ms. Cunningham have used their own fashion sense and an eye for quality craftsmanship to choose the brands and designers the boutique carries. The two women have also cultivated a custom line for dressier clothes.
"We’ve gone to shows in Chicago for children’s clothes and we are both drawn to similar styles. We happened to pick out the hottest items without reading the trade publications, we based our decisions on what we would buy for our own children," Ms. Ryan said.
Fellow West Windsor resident and friend Claire Morris of Charmed by Claire Pied Piper’s next-door neighbor is credited with encouraging Ms. Ryan and Ms. Cunningham to expand their operation in Cranbury from the one-room space.
"We were considering other locations, including New Hope (Pa.) and Princeton, when Phyllis Davidson, owner of Dandeline, told Claire she was moving her business to Princeton, so she was the one who suggested we take the lease here. Claire has just been so helpful," Ms. Cunningham said.
Pied Piper Kids enjoys healthy foot traffic on Main Street during the day, and Ms. Cunningham said the response to the boutique’s opening has been overwhelmingly positive with clothing brands like Tea, and Robeez footwear for elementary school-aged children.
A shopper offered the boutique some praise on Tuesday.
"You certainly have taste," she said. "You’ve got some really great stuff here."
The pair values philanthropy, and bring in smaller local designers who donate some proceeds to charity, such as Caroline and Laurie Axford’s The Name Game line of decorative wooden letters. A portion of the proceeds from Pied Pipers’ customizing, embroidery and clothes goes to Tuesday’s Children, benefiting the children of victims of Sept. 11.
The business partners are careful not to closely associate their personal tragedies with their retail operation, but Ms. Ryan said the care, attention to detail and commitment to quality is one way to repay the extraordinary deeds of those who supported the women after the deaths of their husbands.
"We honestly try to bend over backwards and go beyond what is expected of us, because so many people have done so much for us, whether it is leaving bagels on my doorstep or anything else," Ms. Cunningham said.
"It is our way of giving back," Ms. Ryan interjected.
Ms. Ryan said the business came together quickly after the two decided to work with each other in kid’s retail. Ms. Cunningham said the new outlook she has had since her husband’s death has allowed her to be more courageous.
"The old me would have never have thought about going into business for myself. I would have said, ‘Oh, I don’t have the time,’" Ms. Cunningham said.
Ms. Ryan has a similar outlook, and said she is happy with how it has come together.
"It has all happened very fast, but we are learning a lot very quickly. What’s the worst that could happen?"
Pied Piper Kids is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information call (609) 409-1144 or visit www.piedpiperkids.com.

