Chiquis Boutique has been open for five years in East Moline, Ill and recently expanded to a new location at 655 17th Ave. where they now have more room to display all the unique gowns and décor that they cater to. They sell items for all party occasions including weddings as well as all the sacraments in the church and the party after the ceremony.
Owner of Chiquis Boutique, Tina-Maria Gonzalez started the business because she had a daughter who she wanted dressed.
“I wanted her to have a girly dress and we always had to go to Chicago to get it,” she said.
Gonzalez is also in the income tax business
and during the cold months when people are not usually having a wedding or quinceañeras; she files taxes on a separate part of the business. Gonzalez has been able to tend to many people’s need for income tax services in Spanish and for that reason they come back to her when its time for them to plan a party. The boutique also follows through in the planning for a party at no additional charge.
“We do a lot of services; people don’t just come in and look at something,” she said.
Tina-Maria Gonzalez has been in the tax business for seventeen years and uses what she makes from the tax services to invest in the boutique.
“I’m not competitive with local businesses,” she said. “My prices are a lot different to save people a trip to Chicago.”
Though it was not intended, 95 percent of the boutique’s customers are Hispanic. Even though many have attended a big party, sometimes the client may be the first in their immediate family to organize one.
“A lot of people want to know how to plan the party,” Gonzalez said.
Chiquis Boutique is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m and is closed on Wednesday and Sunday. For more information you can visit the boutique or call (309) 755-4076.