Mingle

It seems like Mingle has gone through a change in owners and I’ve been in twice since under the new management and am hugely disappointed! Both times I’ve been in they had loud hip hop music blaring and I was ignored by the new owner. The first time she was busy tending to her baby in the back leaving the store front empty, when I wanted to try on clothes she put me in the changing room upstairs along with various fixtures and inventory and no lighting. Not once did she come out to see if I needed assistance. OK, I chalked it up to the baby. I understand. But when her husband came in, he ignored me as well and went straight into the back room and the owner did not come out either. So I basically left the store (count themselves lucky empty handed).
The second time I went in, the owner was sitting up front, she did not greet me and in fact, did not say a word to me. Once again, loud hip hop music was blaring and I witnessed a similar scene where two ladies were upstairs in the same cluttered unlit changing area and the owner ignoring them. In fact, she did not even thank them when they left the store.
Look, I get it, you think you’re hip and you like fashion. But there’s a difference in liking fashion and owning a store. You’re going to have to come down a bit and help customers and try to sell your wares. Perhaps you want to shift the previous inventory, then that should be motivation enough to interact with your customers to sell stuff!
Very disappointed and I will not go back there ever again. Consider me a lost customer under this new management and it’s not because the stuff sin’t nice, it’s because the service absolutely BLOWS!

Small and quaint boutique with suprisingly versatile and affordable selection. Whenever I set foot in here I walk away with something whether it be a graphic tee, a light and airy blouse, a new wallet or scarf, and most often a pair of earrings (see attached pic). There’s absolutely no sales pressure here so it’s comfortable to browse whether or not you’re on a shopping mission to find something specific. Always great service with a smile and it’s easy to keep coming back again and again.

this is a cute little boutique that i discovered about 2 years ago. my favorite part of the shop is the local handmade jewelry. i bought a pair of earrings and i’m still in love with them today.
i recently went back to SF and had to stop at mingle to check it out. i came out with a sweater and 5 pieces of jewelry (1 bracelet, 1 necklace and 3 earrings). the jewelry is made of precious stones, but they are NOT large and gaudy like some jewelry made with these stones. they are delicate and a little funky!

It was a beautiful day, so what should one do? Answer: Let’s go check out the Cherry Blossom Festival.
Then we drive past the Cherry Blossom Festival and notice throngs upon throngs of people squished into the festival grounds. Yikes! What should one do? Answer: Let’s go shopping!
By the time I got to Mingle, my feet were sore and I had already purchased a fair amount of stuff, so suffice it to say, I wasn’t really supposed to be buying anything else. That said, when I saw Mingle, I remembered that I had read some great reviews and really wanted to see for myself if it lived up to the hubbub. Besides, there was available metered parking right in front along Union St. It was like a sign from heaven, though I shouldn’t be surprised: Everyone was probably still at the Cherry Blossom Festival.
The clothes were incredibly cute at Mingle, but like I said, I wasn’t really out to get more clothes. I was just going to wander. Then I encounter… wait for it… the JEWELRY DISPLAYS!!! Like how I approach most tasting menus, I wanted to try everything, but given that boyfriend was beyond bored of our Saturday afternoon excursion, I needed to prioritize, so I only tried on 7 items… heehee. Trust me, that was my version of «editing.»
The jewelry is unique, delicate, and quite affordable, and luckily, I had forgotten to wear jewelry today, so I was able to wear it out. Again, a sign from heaven!

Like OMG, this is my new spot for jewelry; Just Fab!!! Mingle has a wonderful selection of clothing and locally made jewelry, literally took me two minutes to find the perfect earrings which was 40%, I LOVED the sound of SALES. The sales woman was just the nicest person and helpful even when she was busy with tourist so helpful to everyone, great sense of style. I will be back:)!!!

This boutiques has it all, from jewelry to dress and accessories. I like the place because of its great selections and great customer service that customers receive from the second they walk into the store. Fashion-​savvy staff helped me look for everything that i need to look fabulous. I can always find nice yet affordable items from Mingle, and I particularly like their belts.

I was originally headed to Jest Jewels to buy my mom a Christmas gift, but good olé Unilocal told me Mingle stocks jewelry by local artists as well!
I was delighted to find a dainty gold bracelet for under $ 100 at Mingle. I also checked out Jest and the best I could find in that price pt was tiny gold plated earrings– nowhere near the same Wow factor.
The Japanese gals that work there were super helpful in suggesting pieces after I described what I wanted and price pt.
From now on, I’ll head there for my last min jewelry gifts instead of Jest Jewels (sorry!).

I love this store! The service is top notch as the main girl, Kate, knows what she’s doing and has a great sense of fashion. She’s very helpful and has great suggestions on what looks good on any body type.
I especially love their selection of jewelry made by local artists. My friend was looking to buy jewelry and we went to several jewelry stores on Union. All the other jewelry stores had outrageous prices, which we could not afford. However, Mingle has cute and well-​made jewelry made by local artists. The best part — affordable prices! My friend was ready to spend $ 900 on one ring at this one store, but then we went into Mingle and she spent $ 600 on 5 pieces of jewelry at Mingle. I even bought a bunch myself. Loves it!

Frank is the man. Right when I stumbled into this lovely boutique, he engaged me in conversation and had me feeling like we were old friends! I ended up buying three pairs of earrings and three rings and even found a cute dress on the sale rack! The earrings were a tad bit pricey for me, but they were all done by local artists, and I think that rocks (plus there were FABULOUS!!! Almost bought more, but I was breaking the bank!), so I caved.
Good thing I live in LA, or I’d be in here every week. :)

Super cute store! I love that 70% of the items they sell are from local designers. I stepped in late one Sunday night with the intent of just browsing but ended up buying 3 adorable one-​of-​a-​kind shirts.
Customer service was top-​notch and the lady who helped me out even suggested a top which I loved!
Also, their jewelry is one of a kind and 100% of them are made from local designers. How cool is that?! The store is cute and definitely a keeper. Stop by when you’re strolling through Union street. Their items are worth a second look.

Super cute and funky clothing boutique. They have a table of the cutest t-​shirts with sassy phrases (around $ 30). A wall with racks of trendy clothing from tops, jackets and pants. There’s also a selection of men’s and baby clothing. Oh and fingerless gloves! Who in SF doesn’t want one of those? Bags, belts and hats are strewn throughout. Even just to have! I was told that many of the brands are by local designers. Hearing this puts me to ease and encourages me to by more!
The sales girl was super friendly and helped me look for all the sizes I needed. The store is a bit tiny, more on the narrower side but all the cute stuff manages to fit perfectly.

So there I was, wandering Union Street on my mission to get a «colorful shirt» for my boyfriend’s birthday. I wanted something kind of stylish but not too Marina (apologies). Mingle was the first place I stopped in, and I found a huge selection of unique mens tshirts (as well as some cute stuff for me!). The woman working (owner?) told me it was all locally made, and helped find me a size in the back, talked to me a lot about the design, fit, etc. Her attentiveness sealed the fact that I’ll be back.
The only thing is that they only have a 7-​day return policy for store credit. Luckily the shirt fit!

After too long, I finally stepped in to Mingle and met Mimi! Meeting her in person was even better than chatting over Unilocal.Her shop is just as adorable as she is!
When I heard about the sale, I had to make it down to SF. Forget the rain — it was worth it! I walked out with a super cute dress. I can’t wait to wear it… Thanks Mimi!!!

Ahhhh, finally a great store on Union street. The service is fantastic, friendly, unpretentious, comfortable and helpful. The store is laid out really well. The prices are reasonable for the unique and artistic fashions you will find there. Lots of fabulously fun jewelry, little wallets and tee-​shirts, good selection of clothes, and my personal favorite: BAGS! and nice bags, not cheapy crappy ones. I got myself a great bag today and that makes me so happy.
I love that the designers are local artists and the pieces are unique. I will definitely be back there.

I didn’t have nearly enough time to check out this place — I had only a few minutes to take a whirlwind tour before jetting back to the car. BUT — what I saw looked great! I particularly loved the table of t-​shirts in the middle of the store, and the patterned unique totes/​bags. I can’t wait to go back next weekend and take more time browsing the selection. (will update this review then!)
*Update* Nothing much more to add after the return visit. Saw a bunch of things I liked, but everything I wanted cost too much (just wasn’t in the mood today). But still big props for having such a great collection of clothing. This place really beat the quality of the other stores in the area, and seems to edit their collection very well.

After a dissapointing vetnure into Blues Jean Bar, Boss Man and I strolled into Mingle and met Mimi. She owns the store and was so wonderful and very cool, on the cousp of «You Rock’ness»
Her store was filled with Indie SF designers. The clothes were fresh and different and the quality was great! Boss Man was totally stoked to find a hoody and some t’s. We talked about Mimi’s dog Nacho and NY.
Boss Man was happy, I was happy.
A true assest tot he SF Shopping culture here on Union Street. I am definetly going back there!!!

A good business reflects the energy and passion of its owner.
Running a small business is no easy task and it’s easy to get disenchanted.
Especially surrounded between a plethora of other fashion boutiques on Union Street.
But Mingle is special.
The Lebron James (aka King James) of the Marina.
Mingle has Mimi.
And therefore it oozes charm, individuality, and just a wonderful sense of positivity
Mimi continues to keep customers coming back to Mingle by constantly looking for new local designers to showcase in her store
She carries…
The kind of stuff that other women will cock their head and coo «oooooo where’d you get that? I’ve never seen a shirt like that before!»
kinda lines at.
Her stuff is…
fun, figure hugging, and some of her peices are even limited editions. (Mingle also carries a fun selection of guys items.)
Not only does Mimi have a great eye for what is unique and hip,
but she makes sure to connect with all of her customers.
Something you don’t find often,
And a hard balance to achieve:
The ability to give honest advice about what will look good on a customer,
But the know-​how to stay away from the whole shopping stalker thing.
Mimi excels at finding this balance.
She dishes out her shopping wisdom and clothes insights with ease.
And no pressure.
When I went into Mingle this weekend, I found the perfect hat!
A brown army-​like brimmed hat, with too darling lighter brown patches on the side.
I haven’t taken it off since.
(If fact I’m wearing it right now at work, while typing this)
Later tonight after work, I will put on my Lululemon sweats and light my heavenly smelling soy candle (which I also picked up at Mingle)
And just kick back and mellow out…
thanks to to Mimi’s Mingle’s magic.

After a 3.5 yrs of fun, I am making my bitter sweet departure. Kate and Frank are now the new owners of MINGLE. I can’t imagine finding nicer people to take over this business I care so much about. They are both passionate and hardworking. They will continue to support local/​Indie designers and bring in fresh finds. I have no doubt that Frank and Kate will make MINGLE a even better place to visit !!
****************************************************************************I LOVE this place. I can’t believe I haven’t written my review sooner.
I can honest say I love this place because I am here practically 7 days a week. I love it for the passionate and talented Indie designers that are housed here and the unique and fabulous pieces that they produce. Designers like Sparechange, Hyden Yoo, Amy Cools Ginger13, Bryna Nicole and over 60 others. I also LOVE the customers who patronize this place. they have an appreciation for fashion that doesn’t always follow the trends.
Most of the clothing and accessories are extremely well priced – ½ that of major brand name labels… and many are handmade and one-​of-​a-​kind. If you want something different. something you can’t find at a mall or dept store. check this place out.
(Full Disclosure: MINGLE was my child out of wedlock but my proud heir)

Small shop owners everywhere would do well to take a cue from proprietor Mimi Ting. Even in last Sunday’s sweltering heat she was super sweet and chatted us up as we looked around her beautiful store (and we weren’t the only shoppers.)
This sort of experience makes me want to go back to Mingle. And I will. I only hope that next time I won’t be sweating profusely in record-​breaking temperatures so that I may actually have the opportunity to try on clothes without being afraid of imparting my perspiration upon them.

I recently purchased a hot jacket from Mingle (Caffeine is the brand) and now the girls won’t leave me alone! Very cool guys and girls stuff, all mostly local designers, all about having fun. Mimi (the owner) and Renee are super cool — they’re both bundles of energy and sass — and are always ready to offer up fashion as well as social tips. Mingle is, after all, about mingling. See more of my musings on Mingle at: