Terry in a Tender Mood – #MBMonday

Terry in a Tender Mood – T-P Leisure section ad, 28-Jan-1979.

Terry in a Tender Mood

Maison Blanche’s ad on the front page of the Metro Section of the Times-Picayune on 28-January-1979 promotes “Terry in a Tender Mood.” While ads from earlier decades featured drawings from the store’s Art Department, MB used photographs by 1979. I don’t know when this change happened, so if you do, let me know in comments!

Maison Blanche in 1979

Late January often brings chilly weather to New Orleans. This ad presents the feelings we find when marking Imbolc/Canndlemas. We look to warmer weather in many places. Retail therapy brings the promise of fewer layers of clothing! From the ad:

Revealing an unexpected taste for the romantic in dresses, softly subtly feminine. Today’s supple fashion terry takes beautifully to full-blown sleeves, slightly wider tops, gracefully moving skirts, goes to dinner, informal parties, remains cool, calm, collected, all summer. From Melissa Lane, off-white, accented in a new manner with camel, underscores new sleeve interest; sizes 8 to 18. 40.00. Miss MB, all stores. Penny Young uses terry with slenderizing fullness–both top and bottom–refreshing colors: celery or mauve. Sizes 14 1/2 to 24 1/2. 45.00. Better half-sizes, all stores.

You can tell this copy hit the public long before Twitter!

MB Stores in 1979

Maison Blanche operated five stores in 1979. Canal Street remained the flagship. Two stores served Metairie/Jefferson, Airline Village and Clearview Shopping Center. Westside in Gretna enabled west bankers to avoid the bridge, and The Plaza in Lake Forest served Da East.

MB offered parking validation for Canal Street shoppers. While the malls appealed to suburban residents, Canal Street presented a number of shopping opportunities. The store’s buyers placed new merchandise and product lines at Canal. So, they walked out of their offices to the retail floor and watched how those products performed. if a line worked at Canal, move it out to the other stores. I’m sure “Terry in a Tender Mood” didn’t stay at Canal Street only for long.

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