The Next Chapter

There is room to breathe at the curated closet. The boutique has the warmth and richness of a beautifully appointed walk-in closet, with designer pieces arranged in striking color groupings that catch the eye as you move through the space. Yet for all its visual interest, nothing feels excessive or crowded. It is a space designed to let shoppers take their time and appreciate what is around them.

For owner Ashley Mills, that sense of space is part of the experience. Luxury, she believes, is not just about the designer label on a garment. It is about how you feel when you walk into a room, and how you feel when you walk out of it.

The Curated Closet, which opened in July, is Mills’ fourth business. But unlike her other ventures, the boutique was never intended to become another personal revenue stream. Mills calls it a “passion project,” created to fund her nonprofit, The Next Chapter Collective, and its mission of helping women navigate significant life transitions with dignity, confidence, and a little encouragement.

Through what Mills calls “curated wardrobe grants,” women can receive $500 to $2,500 in credit to build a wardrobe suited to whatever their next phase requires: perhaps an interview after years spent raising children, clothing for a new job, pieces for a date night after leaving a difficult relationship, or simply a wardrobe that helps them recognize themselves again.

“Even strong women need support and encouragement,” Mills says. She wants women to know it’s OK to accept help.

It is a philosophy that sits at the center of both the boutique and the woman behind it: sometimes empowerment begins with someone simply saying, “Let us help you be the version of yourself you envision.”

Highlands proves to be an ideal setting for such a mission. The area enjoys a degree of affluence, and there are women with the space to give new life to designer pieces they no longer wear. The Curated Closet taps into that abundance to create a cycle of regeneration, where one woman’s unused treasure can become part of another woman’s new chapter.

For those looking to part with designer pieces, Mills offers three no-judgment options: sell the items and receive cash, donate the proceeds to The Next Chapter Collective, or split the proceeds between themselves and the nonprofit. When an item is fully donated, the entire sale goes to TNCC. For other sales, 20 to 30 percent goes to the nonprofit, while the remainder supports the boutique’s overhead and employee compensation.

Taking care of her employees is important to Mills.

“I like to take care of those who take care of me,” she says.

The same philosophy of care extends to the women served through TNCC. Selected applicants are given what Mills describes as a luxury experience of their own. On a designated day, the boutique closes to the public and becomes a private space just for them. There might be coffee, fruit, or even mimosas as Mills and her team help curate a wardrobe tailored to the woman’s individual style, personality, and needs.

She isn’t treated like someone receiving charity. She is treated like a client, someone whose time, preferences, and dignity matter.

And a woman doesn’t have to be impoverished to qualify. She may simply be navigating a significant life transition and lack the financial room to invest in herself. Entering a new period of life might call for a different version of her wardrobe, and a different expression of her identity.

“Women do so much for everybody,” Mills says. “They don’t really fill their own cups.”

At The Curated Closet, filling that cup might begin with something as simple as finding the right dress, the perfect blazer, or blouse that helps a woman feel like herself again. But the larger gift is the reminder that she is worth the investment.

As someone who runs four businesses and a nonprofit, stillness doesn’t seem to come naturally to Mills. “I thrive in the chaos,” she says, laughing. She is often working from her car, moving from one responsibility to the next, and she credits a strong support system, especially her father, with helping shape the blue-collar work ethic that keeps her going.

Her father may have instilled in her strong values, but Mills has also learned that strength doesn’t mean doing everything alone. Her reprieve comes in the form of family and friends, the people who remind her to slow down long enough to appreciate the life she has built.

Sometimes that means something as simple as sitting on the porch with a glass of wine and FaceTiming a friend.

“Does wine count?” she joked when asked how she fills her own cup. It does.

Perhaps that is fitting for someone whose work is rooted in reminding women that they are allowed to receive, too. They can ask for help. They can take up space. They can be cared for. And they can step into whatever comes next, feeling a little more like the women they always imagined themselves to be.

To learn more about The Curated Closet and The Next Chapter Collective, you can visit curatedclosetnc.com and nextchaptercollectivenc.com You can also follow The Curated Closet on Facebook and Instagram for updates, styling inspiration, and more.