Market Watch: Sarah Buxton of Marionmercer.com

Sarah Buxton, 25, an ex-magazine girl lived in Brooklyn for years before deciding to move back home to St. Louis to be closer to her family. Instead of settling into a quiet suburban life, the fashionista channeled her passion for clothes into a pet project: marionmercer.com. Today, the site has a devoted following of shoppers from London to Louisville. They come for Buxton's amazing selection of vintage couture -- everything from Azzedine Alaia to Christian Dior. But what keeps them coming is Buxton's attention to the shopping experience which starts with a cleanly designed, uber-informative website and leads to a breathtaking, beautiful, bowed box which the couture goods are delivered in. On a recent trip to New York, I caught up with Buxton over lunch to chat about her fashionable new journey.

So why a vintage couture site?
I wanted to offer a vintage equivalent of an online designer boutique so young, cool girls who are used to buying designer or contemporary designers could have an alternative to wearing the same things as everyone else, but without the hassle and patience needed to dig through crowded vintage stores or scouring eBay for hours.

Where does your love for vintage clothing come from?
I worked in NY in the fashion industry for six years and, like most people in the business, hate wearing the same thing as someone else. When I discovered the beauty of wearing vintage I realized that not only did no one else have what I had, but these pieces had a history behind them and this mysterious allure of "what is she wearing?" I love mixing a dress from the '70s with new accessories and no one is the wiser that my dress is older than I am!

How do you source the things we see on your site?
Travel, travel, travel! Marion Mercer is a one woman show so I'm lucky enough to have a great family that helps me out with shipping orders while I'm on the road. My favorite places to acquire new merchandise so far have been London, San Francisco, Paris, and I take road trips to small Midwest college towns where I find amazing costume jewelry and the occasional designer gem.

What's the best piece you've collected so far?
That's so hard to say because I only buy pieces that I LOVE, but right now there's an Azzedine Alaia leather skirt with a cutout in the back from the '80s that I'm obsessed with and a beaded fringe shawl that I wear with a plain cotton tank and my boyfriend's jeans, but would look equally cool over an LBD. I also love the jewelry -- especially the big bone necklace.

Besides amazing pieces at amazing prices, what else is there to love about Marion Mercer?
Marion Mercer only ships items that have been cleaned and repaired, offers free domestic ground shipping, returns are accepted (rare with vintage!), we ship internationally, and every item is styled two ways and often mixed with modern basics to inspire our customers with different ways to wear these pieces year after year.

Where do you see the site evolving to in the next year?
Right now I'm keeping things simple and focusing on acquiring amazing product that I can offer at a great price for those who love and appreciate designer vintage, but don't have the time, patience, or desire to hunt for it themselves. The layout of the site will most likely evolve in the next few months just to change things up, and I'm toying with the idea of a blog discussing my travels and stories.

When you are not scouring the country for vintage pieces you are...?
Hanging with my family and dog Manolo (aka Manny), shooting hoops with my dad and brother on the driveway, BBQing, going to Cardinals games and concerts, and learning how to play guitar. I also go back to NYC every couple months to see all my friends and people watch for inspiration!