The Baldwin Boutique: Celebrating Baldwin’s Heritage through Design

Boxes and bins brimming with new merchandise line the blue-carpeted floor of The Baldwin School Store. The launch for The Baldwin Boutique’s fall line “PREP” is days away, and co-founders Meredith Lewis (P ’33, ’36) and Radhika Cobb (P ’34) have a full day’s work ahead to create the Boutique’s signature in-store displays. Featuring sweaters, scarves, and accessories by such makers as Vineyard Vines, J.Press, and Tuckernuck, the fall collection will be the Boutique’s most comprehensive collection to date. “The inspiration for our new season is the season itself,” says Lewis. “This is the season of back-to-school, new pencils, and crisp backpacks, apples, bonfires, and Homecoming. We leaned into classic cuts, patterns, and pieces — rugby stripes, cozy fabrics, and vintage designs. We are so fortunate to have the opportunity to build this new brand for Baldwin that honors the deep heritage of the School while simultaneously celebrating our vibrant community.”

 

“The Baldwin Boutique is a way to build connections among students, parents, faculty, alumnae, and the broader community,” continues Cobb. “It combines style with school spirit, allowing us to celebrate and represent Baldwin wherever we go. The idea came [about] through a very organic and casual conversation about wanting to have stylish, elevated apparel that we could wear as parents to show our Baldwin pride around town. What began as a simple conversation then grew into an even more meaningful opportunity for the Baldwin community.”

 

Conceived in September 2025, The Baldwin Boutique is celebrating the one-year anniversary of its founding this month. Volunteer-driven with profits and proceeds benefiting The Baldwin School, the purpose of the Boutique was to create a custom line of merchandise for the School to enhance school branding, build community, and promote school spirit in a way that would complement the existing spirit wear and uniforms available in The School Store. “The Baldwin Boutique is a wonderful example of our community’s spirit,” says Head of School Lynne Macziewski. “Parents volunteering their time and talent have created something that brings us together and gives back to our community.”

 

Often asked about their previous work experience, Lewis and Cobb bring complementary backgrounds to the Boutique. Lewis has a background in the arts as a fine art photographer and magazine writer with an early career background at Sotheby’s auction house in New York. Cobb brings her business and investment expertise from The Carlyle Group. Lewis and Cobb both have sons at The Haverford School and have long enjoyed the beautiful pieces available to the Haverford community. As co-chairs of Baldwin’s Pumpkin Painting fundraiser, they had a meeting last fall to which Lewis wore a Haverford Pink Pineapple varsity sweater. “I had a Haverford engagement later that day and realized only after the fact that I had worn the Haverford sweater to a Baldwin meeting,” says Lewis. 

 

The wearing was fortuitous and launched a conversation between Lewis, Cobb, and the Baldwin School Parents’ Association President Teresa DiBona (P ’34) about bringing similar apparel to the Baldwin community. As DiBona remembers, “We saw an opportunity to offer beautiful, elevated pieces that would appeal to both parents and daughters. I was really excited about the possibility of expanding [upon] the brands we normally carry and offering parents and the girls something new. I love Baldwin and was excited to be a part of creating something that could bring even more joy to our families.” After the meeting, Lewis went home and outlined a new initiative for the School naming the concept The Baldwin Boutique. A week later a steering committee was established consisting of Lewis, Cobb, DiBona, and Vesta Salehi (P ’36, ’37).

 

“The Baldwin Boutique was created from a simple but meaningful idea: to bring people together through beautiful, thoughtfully chosen things while creating a warm and welcoming experience,” says Salehi. “What made the first year so special was seeing that idea come to life through the creativity, generosity, and the commitment of everyone involved. The Boutique quickly became more than a place to shop. It became a reflection of the Baldwin community and the people who helped make it possible.”

 

The first weeks and months of the initiative presented the challenge of defining the Boutique, its goals, and its charter in a formal business proposal, as well as choosing the first merchandise and, with it, building the Boutique’s brand, look, and vendor partnerships. Organizing a curation process through seasonal “Look Books” for Macziewski, creating an internal product tracking system, and building an in-house operational structure were some of the many steps needed to create a functional new fundraising arm for the School — all entirely with volunteer hours.

 

The Boutique officially launched its first collection on Jan. 12, 2026, with a soft launch at the Nov. 23, 2025 Baldwin Holiday Market co-chaired by Salehi, Danielle DeFeo (P ’32), and Tal Rosenthal (P ‘38). The immediate response to the Boutique was one of great excitement. Early pieces such as a Tuckernuck quilted pullover in navy, a Cotes of London down vest, and silver metallic totes by CB Station were instantly popular. A second collection called “Cherry Blossoms” followed in April, with new pieces by such brands as Minnow and Smathers & Branson that celebrated in pink and Baldwin blue the iconic cherry blossom trees that line the front drive. “Our heritage campus lends itself well to classic design,” says Lewis. “One of my favorite pieces is the Smathers & Branson panoramic needlepoint scene belt that illustrates all of our signature buildings from the front gate to the gym — in the colors of springtime.”

 

It was the front gate that also provided Lewis with the inspiration for the Boutique’s logo. “It was late at night,” Lewis remembers. “I kept thinking about Paris Metro signs — the famed Art Nouveau work by French architect Hector Guimard in organic shapes. This brought me to the Baldwin gate and the original ironwork that once graced its top. I created a few sketches of the top medallion with two encircled B’s and sent them through to the Baldwin Marketing and Communications team. A few days later, we had our finished logo from in-house designer Nicole Stettner, one that I think speaks to our purpose for this community: to celebrate our heritage through thoughtful, elevated, curated design.”

 

If the Boutique aims to build opportunities to celebrate Baldwin in the community, it has also provided the Boutique’s volunteers an opportunity to build community together. “I feel so fortunate to have been able to be a part of the formation of this important initiative, and it has been transformative to my Baldwin experience,” says Cobb. “I can’t wait to see what more we can do!” 

 

Lewis and Cobb agree that seeing their curated selections in the community, especially on the girls, is the most rewarding aspect of working on the Boutique. “One of my favorite things is seeing other parents and Baldwin girls around campus wearing our items,” says Cobb. “It has also been fun to see alumnae and grandparents enjoying many products for themselves. That broader engagement is very special to see.”

 

“Seeing a piece develop from a concept — such as our French market baskets that sold out in 10 minutes to the Baldwin beaded event clutch, polar bear cardigans, and varsity hair bows — to noting its appearance at an event or in a classroom makes the investment of our time worth every minute,” continues Lewis. “I have particularly loved our internal Baldwin partnerships, such as our crossover work for the Baldwin School Parents’ Association. In May we had a team of 10 dedicated parent volunteers wear a Lisi Lerch hat, hand-painted for us by local artist Jane Hirshberg, to Ladies’ Day at the Devon Horse Show. Each equestrian-themed hat celebrated a unique moment from Baldwin’s history when horses paraded on the front fields of the campus. The hats were stunning, and it was great fun to showcase Baldwin in the community at large. Given Baldwin’s incredible legacy, the creative opportunities for our brand are seemingly endless.”

 

The Baldwin Boutique’s success belongs to a great many people who helped bring it into being. “We have had extraordinary assistance from Baldwin itself,” says Lewis. “First and foremost we have enjoyed the unwavering support of our Head of School Lynne Macziewski. She embraced this project from the beginning, recognizing its potential and also its meaning for and purpose in the community. Her staff has been terrific, too. Chief Financial Officer Brian Lorigan has been instrumental in helping us develop our back-of-house operations. Director of Parent Engagement Christina Ahn has provided encouragement and practical assistance throughout. The BSPA has been a dedicated partner in helping introduce the Boutique to our parent community.”

“School Store Manager Christina Forrest has shared her insight and her time with us as we learned how to bring our ideas to life,” continues Cobb. “Executive Assistant to the Head of School and Board of Trustees Christine Giordano, the Baldwin Marketing and Communications Department, and Baldwin Facilities have all played important roles in our day-to-day needs. We are grateful to the entire community for its enthusiasm for the Boutique.”

 

The Baldwin Boutique’s fall line PREP opened in-Store and online on September 14. A curated winter line will follow for the holidays. “Celebrating Baldwin through the seasons this first year, from our early winter apparel at the Holiday Market to Baldwin in cherry blossoms, Americana for the 250th, and now PREP has been a joy,” says Lewis. “We hope the Boutique will continue to thrive – and honor Baldwin’s heritage – for years to come.” All proceeds from the Boutique benefit The Baldwin School, and, to-date, the venture remains volunteer-driven with support from Forrest. “The Baldwin Boutique offers our School an opportunity to provide an elevated line of clothing and accessories for every member of our community, from our littlest Bears to our graduates, parents, and grandparents,” says Macziewski. “[E]ach season’s curated collection reflects well on the Baldwin brand and our institutional reputation. The pieces suit any occasion and reflect the excellence for which we are known.”