When Tanya Pomerleau was ready to move her upscale consignment boutique out of the space she was renting in Bath, she found just what she was looking for at 510 Bath Road in Wiscasset.

The move came with the bonus of returning to a town she was already fond of.

Pomerleau, 35, of Woolwich, was a literacy specialist in Wiscasset schools for five years.

“People here care about their neighbors,” Pomerleau said. “Wiscasset gets a lot of tourists, which is always good for business. But it's really about the people who live here,” she said about why she's glad to be back working here.

The space in Bath where Pomerleau started her boutique never had an ideal layout for the business, she said. It had multiple rooms rather than the open concept her new location has.

The parking is better, too; and being on Route 1 gives the business excellent visibility, she said.

At a ribbon-cutting May 10, Wiscasset officials and representatives of the Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce welcomed Pomerleau and FEnique Boutique to town.

The name's first two letters represent both the strong element iron and the first syllable of “female.” A theme of the business is that a woman can be both strong and feminine, the married mother of three explained.

“I think it's wonderful,” Chamber board member Monique McRae of The First said of Pomerleau's decision to move the business to Wiscasset. “She'll be busy,” McRae predicted.

“We're very excited, especially when a space has been vacant for a while,” Town Planner Misty Parker said. “Tanya's been wonderful to work with,” she added.

In addition to clothes, the store sells wearable and decorative “upcycled” art, like bowls made of puzzles and hairpins made from vintage buttons.

“We're always looking for new artists,” Pomerleau said.

The business is open Monday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Susan Johns can be reached at 207-844-4633 or sjohns@wiscassetnewspaper.com.