Our History

In the late 19th century, there were few employment opportunities for women in the male-dominated workforce. Ariadne Lawnin, a prominent St. Louisan, gathered several of her female friends and founded The Woman's Exchange of St. Louis. The vision was to provide a marketplace for women to earn a livelihood through the sale of their handmade goods and heirloom quality garments.

In September of 1883, the Woman’s Exchange of St. Louis officially opened its doors at 214 North 6th Street.  In addition to the gift shop, the Exchange opened a tearoom serving inexpensive meals, a resource library housing 950 volumes, and offered instruction in cooking, sewing, needlework, and other popular domestic arts.

The 1883 May edition of The Missouri Republic wrote of the founding ladies: “Starting out upon the principle that there could be no greater charity than helping those who try to help themselves, the ladies are bound to succeed if the earnestness of intent and never failing attention to detail can guarantee success.”