By Gretchen Webster

WESTPORT — The first J. McLaughlin women’s clothing store opened on Third Avenue in New York City in 1977, and 10 years later, the retailer opened its first Westport store on Main Street. 

The Westport store eventually closed in 2012 because of rising rents and an influx of national brand stores. 

But J. McLaughlin recently returned to Westport and officials of the business are glad to be back, said Kevin McLaughlin, co-founder and creative director of the company that now has 160 stores.

“Westport is in our roots,” McLaughlin said. “Westport was our first venture into a suburban setting.”

The new Westport store, at 382 Post Road East, opened April 8. Like other J. McLaughlin stores, it carries its own brand of women’s clothing. “Everything we sell, we manufacture,” McLaughlin said.

Although the Westport store stocks only clothing for women, men are welcome to come to the outlet to work with staff to select clothes from J. McLaughlin’s online catalogue of menswear.

Although the new store is boutique size, it has been attracting many former Westport customers, according to Niki Fogel, the store’s manager. 

Many shoppers visiting the new J. McLaughlin store, she said, have said they missed the retailer’s presence in Westport and are pleased to see it glad to have it return.

The clothier also has a store in Southport, at 342 Pequot Ave., which opened about 10 years ago. 

The idea of expanding beyond New York City store to Westport in the 1970s first came to McLaughlin’s attention, he said, because his brother was a lifeguard at the Westport YMCA, and liked the atmosphere in Westport where most of the stores were locally owned at the time.

The Main Street store thrived for years, but as the town and shopping trends changed, the decision was made to close shop here. 

“We had to leave,” McLaughlin said. “We prefer to be in a market with local stores – there were too many national chains … some of the flavor had changed,” he said.

But local stores are booming again, he noted, and the company decided to return. “We are happy to be back,” he said.

Anne Randell, senior vice president of marketing and e-commerce at J. McLaughlin, said the business plans to sponsor fundraising events for Westport charities in the future, such as a “sip-and-shop” where 15 to 20 percent of revenue taken in during the event will go to a local nonprofit.

 “We like to give back to the community,” she said.

J. McLaughlin, 382 Post Road East, is open Monday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Phone: 475-284-2495.