Gia’s on Main Boutique opened on July 5 in downtown Clanton. (Photos by Anthony Richards)

Gia’s on Main Boutique has only been opened in downtown Clanton since July 5, but has already begun to capture the attention of the community.

The new business is owned and operated by Kim Monceaux whose husband Dave owns and operates Kountry Kitchen in Clanton.

“It will be nice for people to know that if you’ve got a birthday coming up, you don’t have to leave town to find a gift,” Monceaux said.

The couple has moved around the south during their years of raising a family, but have been in Clanton for the past five years.

According to Monceaux, the family made a decision about three months ago to become a fixture within the Clanton community.

What better way to become entrenched in the area than to own two businesses.

A variety of handmade jewelry and gift items can be found at throughout the store.

Monceaux continues to get to know the community with every person that walks through the doors of the store, after she never quite had the chance having worked in Birmingham since moving to Clanton.

The only real interact that Monceaux was able to build with the residents was when she helped make the deserts for Kountry Kitchen on Sundays.

“We consider our businesses our ministries,” Dave Monceaux said.

Renovating the store’s inside was a two-month project that took time and gave Monceaux the opportunity to express her creativity.

Nearly every piece of furniture or decoration in the boutique was restored from thrift shops or was put together with the help of volunteers from the community.

“My first love is home décor,” Monceaux said. “We had talked about opening a boutique for a while, and it finally just seemed to be the right fit.”

The store sells clothing from high school to adult sizes, Alabama and Auburn game day apparel, as well as handmade jewelry from designers in Birmingham, Arkansas and Georgia.

“We’re trying to fill the shelves with what the community asks for,” Monceaux said. “I’m not hoping to mimic anybody.”