LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Thursday's grand opening in PRP was three years in the making; Crown by Standard moved into the Raggard Road shopping center off the Greenbelt Highway.
Patricia Standard started this journey when she picked up hat making in 2021.
"It's a lot of work, but it's worth it," she mused, looking around the store filled with her creations in every color of the rainbow.
Worth it, because of her customer's smiles.
"Yes, it's one-of-a-kind. I think it may be the first in this area, so that's good for the community," she said. "That's good for west end, south end, east end. It's just good for everybody."
Milliner supplier Bart Phanenstiel agreed. He saw Standard's business grow to the brick and mortar store out of her living room.
"We are definitely a hot spot and probably the hat capital of the United States, is what I would say," he said.
Standard takes custom jobs out of her bright yellow studio in the back — but has stern rules for bespoke Derby hats, wanting at least three weeks of advance notice.
"I didn't know how much I loved them until my mentor, Myrtle Curry, taught me how to make one," she said.
Looking in the mirror, Ebony Bartee loved the colorful creations too. She saw her inner self reflected in the hats she's bought from Standard.
"Strong. I feel powerful," she told herself.
However, she's not willing to publicly say if the pink and cerulean hat she tried on is her official choice for Thurby in 2025.
"But let's just say if Ms. Pat was to replicate this, then I could see this being along my Derby festivities," she added with a laugh.
Though Standard needs plenty of support year-round to pay for the storefront.
"When you have places like this that are popping up and are bringing these kinds of things to your community, you gotta support 'em," Cynthia Brown with the Louisville Urban League said. "You come out, you buy, you tell your friends, you follow them on social media."
As director of Entrepreneurship at the league, she would know. They have a program helping small businesses like Standard's get off the ground.
Denise Walker Smith, a brand new customer, came in looking for a new church hat. She buys plenty outside of Derby season. This new store means she doesn't have to order them online anymore.
"I want to make sure that she stays open, for me, because it's not that far away," Walker Smith said, chuckling. "So definitely, I will be back."
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