The first thing you notice when you enter LBD is the colorful assortment of beautiful clothes and accessories laid before you like candy for women. The second thing, that is hard to miss, is the love for each other the owners share.

The mother/daughter team of Kimberly and Alexandra Harris opened LBD in the Glenwood Tearoom on Line Avenue back in March. For Kimberly, fashion has always been a passion in her life. “I’ve lived in Shreveport most of my adult life. My husband is a physician here and I’ve been a stay at home mom and ran my husband’s practice for 20 years. Since my kids are grown, I decided I needed to find something to do,” she explained. “I love fashion - I have always had a passion for it and being stylish and trendy, and try to keep up with my daughter. A few years ago I started shopping at Forever 21. I love that store because it offers a lot of trendy clothes at a fraction of the price. I thought their concept was brilliant and why not do that here on a smaller scale?” Kimberly said. “That’s when I came up with the idea of opening a boutique.” I talked it over with my daughter and so we went to market in New York and saw how much buyers were getting the clothes for versus how much shops are selling them for and was amazed. And that’s how LBD got started.”

Alexandra came on board without a lot of coaxing from her mother. “I have always been my mom’s shadow - she hung the moon and stars and the sun. She’s my everything. That’s how this relationship works,” Alexandra said. “It has been awesome - getting to travel with her and be in the shop together. Of course my favorite part of the business is being with my mom. But all of this is fun - I love styling people, I love the fashion, I love marketing it, and to give another woman the satisfaction of feeling beautiful is so great. Every woman should be told that they are beautiful.”

LBD is a boutique that is for the everyday woman looking for the latest trends with a classic edge. They carry high end couture clothing and runway trends that the everyday woman can afford. We carry some of the same brands that are sold in large high end department stores such as Barney’s , Bloomingdales, and Neiman Marcus,” Alexandra said. They also carry “Red Bottom” shoes, which are uncannily like the extremely expensive and coveted Christian Louboutin brand shoes seen on many red carpets - but at just a fraction of the cost.

Kimberly loves being able to help women. “Any woman can look and feel beautiful with the right outfit – no matter the body type. When women come in here it’s my opportunity to make women feel good about themselves.” Also, being with her daughter on a day-today basis provides her a lot of joy. “ It’s such a bonding experience because we have to come together here. My surroundings inspire me, and my children inspire me too.”

Both women have different things that keep them busy outside of LBD. “I’m currently at BPCC and will graduate next semester with three degrees - general studies, marketing and business - and will continue on and to go to LSUS and get my marketing advertising and business degrees with a minor in accounting,” said Alexandra. “I’ve recently gotten into working out. I like to spend time with my family and I’m very big into my girls nights.” She also has recently done some acting, having performed in the BPCC production of Dark of the Moon.

Before opening LBD, Kimberly spent some time in Los Angeles pursuing her dream of becoming a professional singer. “I moved to LA for 9 months - you get to the point when you have to figure out what you’re going to do with the rest of your life - and I thought maybe I should be a singer. It’s a natural talent I’ve always had. I went out there and tried it, my husband and children were very supportive and while I was there my son and his wife got pregnant with twins,’ she said. “I thought, God, you must be telling me this is not what I’m supposed to do. I decided to not pursue it.

In LBD, Kimberly and Alexandra have found their perfect outlet for their love of fashion and for each other. Kimberly’s passion for style started in her youth, which passed down to Alexandra, and now they have the opportunity to pass it on to their clients. “When I set my mind to do something I’m going to make it happen. We want to take this places, and I think there’s a big future for LBD,” noted Kimberly.

Holiday Lanes has a powerful, unique group of women working as part of a team. Proprietor and managing member Melanie Coleman has been running the family business since 2005. “I own the bowling center with two of my brothers, and my father built it in 1960 because it was fun to bowl,” she said. “When he passed away, we kept it. I started learning about the business and it was fun,” she said. “One of the key things that drew me to the business was the element of community - groups of people come as families, as birthday parties, bowling teams and as companies. Things change when they’re in that element, because they are playing together. For those in a league, it’s their country club.”

Coleman is proud to be a woman in the bowling industry, and to have a team of women working beside her. “It’s really one of those workplaces where women are accepted and not held back,” she said. “At our center, I think because our mission is to create fun entertainment in an unforgettable sort of way, we create an environment where women can thrive and won’t be held back. They can let their light shine because there is a space to allow it. From minimum wage to the top of the heap, we have a group of talented women.”

Roxy Flanagan - General Manager and Food and Beverage Manager Flanagan came to Holiday Lanes with a background in business. “I decided to work in the bowling industry because I was attracted to the family fun atmosphere. Before I worked at Holiday Lanes I had ten plus years of business management experience,” she said. “My favorite part of the day is accomplishing the daily tasks we have set forth to make Holiday Lanes more efficient, thus allowing direct focus on the clientele.”

Flanagan has been married for 18 years and has two teenage daughters and three cats. and in her spare time enjoys concerts and outdoor activities. For Flanagan, working for Holiday Lanes is a testament to the power of women. “The work environment at Holiday Lanes is a classic example of what women can and have done in the modern business world.”

Paula Hadwin - League and Tournament Coordinator Hadwin was a school teacher for 32 years before becoming League Coordinator for Holiday Lanes. “As a bowler, I was a natural fit for League Coordinator at Holiday Lanes. I get to talk with fellow bowlers and encourage them to join a league,” she said. “I know so many of them personally, so it makes it easy to find the right “fit” for them in a league. This has made working for Holiday Lanes an easy job for me. I enjoy talking with the people at the lanes and sharing tales of bowling experiences. Working for Holiday Lanes is one of my favorite times in my life.”

Hadwin and her husband Larry have been married for 37 years. When not working, she spends time with her two grandchildren, as well as bowling in at least two to three leagues each week. She is also a member of Pleasant Valley Methodist Church where she leads the singing or plays the piano every Sunday.

Cheryl Reine - Youth Director Reine spent her early career working at a psychiatric/ chemical dependency hospital and adolescent hospital. She was then a stay at home mom for 12 years, but fate brought her to Holiday Lanes. “When my children were little we lived in New Orleans, and we relocated to Shreveport after Hurricane Katrina. After two weeks of news reports and realizing the need for my children to focus on something other than what was happening, I took them bowling. They immediately fell in love with the sport and wanted to join a league….that was in 2005,” she said. In 2009 she was hired to be the Director of Youth - a brand new position at Holiday Lanes.

Reine loves her job - no doubt about it. “The favorite part of my work is working with the 250+ kids yearly in our various youth programs. I enjoy getting to know them and watching them grow up. Many have been bowling since they were five years old and I get to watch them mature and graduate from high school. Several of them call me “mom”, so I feel that they are all my children. Holiday Lanes has become an extended family to me and my family,” she said.

Reine and her husband Alvin have been married since 1994 and have three teenage sons, all three are bowlers. In her spare time you can find her at Holiday Lanes in the Adult/ Youth League, attending her son’s athletic events, sewing or reading.

La’Tasha Taylor - Head Customer Service Representative Taylor has been with Holiday Lanes for 13 years, and is the first person you will see upon entering the alley. “Almost everyone who walks through our doors is just looking to have a good time or good food and drinks and I love being able to provide them with that. It brightens my day to see people enjoying themselves,” she said. “Because bowling is a sport anyone can do, I get to meet different people of all ages and walks of life which makes for some pretty interesting days.”

Not only is Taylor busy with her duties at home, she also is a busy mother of five - three boys and two girls ranging in age from 4-13. “Because I am so busy with my children, I do enjoy my down time by relaxing with a good book,” she said.

Taylor feels a great reward in being a part of the team at Holiday Lanes. “I am proud to say that I work for a company that has been in business for 54 years and I have been an employee for 13 years of that. I believe the dynamic of so many women in this business allows us to be sensitive to the needs of the community and our guests. We provide good clean family entertainment. There’s nothing better!”

Robin Williams - Marketing Maven Williams came to Holiday Lanes with a background in the graphic arts and the railroad industry. “Holiday Lanes is one of the most awesome places that I’ve ever worked. We are all about FUN. We want people to know that while bowling is a fun activity, it also is a FIT activity. Bowling gets you moving and laughing. Very few sports give you the opportunity to have a blast, even if your score isn’t top notch,” she said.

In her spare time, Williams enjoys being with her two children, and exploring the best of what Shreveport- Bossier has to offer. “I get so jazzed when I go to events in the community like the Farmer’s Market, the Maker’s Fair, theater, concerts and Festivals. One thing that I always say is that if you think there is nothing to do in SB, then you aren’t looking.”

Williams notes that support and teamwork help create the great work environment at Holiday Lanes. “As a work site that employs a large group of women, it is important to support each other and lift each other up. Our women make up only a part of our team. The men that work for Holiday Lanes are equally awesome. Our Proprietor and Managing Member, Melanie, allows for all crew members to contribute their unique talents to making Holiday Lanes a fun work environment.”