Mona Lisa owners happy to be in Orland Park

At the Orland Park Crossing shopping center — between Francesca’s and Evereve — a familiar face recently turned up.

Mona Lisa Boutique, run by the France-loving sisters Jill Evans and Wendy Lundberg, opened in Orland Park in early June.

Since 1991, Palos Heights was home to this unique boutique. Then, by chance, 27 years later, a space presented itself in an Orland Park shopping hub.

Mona Lisa is a gifts, home and women’s clothing store — everything familiar about a local boutique but with a warm history.

The store first opened off Route 83 and Harlem Avenue — nestling into the community for 22 years. Evans said with six window fronts it was far larger than the next two they would own.

Then, the store moved into what Evans called a “lovely” spot on 123rd Street for five years, before moving to 14215 S. LaGrange Road.

“We drew people from Orland Park [at those locations],” said Evans, a Palos Heights native. “But now we’ve seen more customers from Palos Heights, simply because of the shopping ... This is where I come to shop.”

The sisters opened nearly three decades ago, drawn into the business for the love of fashion. Mona Lisa, Lundberg explained, is known as the classic beauty — referring to Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Italian Renaissance portrait.

“We thought, ‘classic clothes for beautiful women,’” she said, but added, “We’re quite different from when we first started.”

Walking in, customers might be greeted with a warm smell of the holidays. But the candles are not the only-holiday ready item. Halloween merchandise is on its way out, and customers are looking to snowman decals and music made with silver bells.

In addition to the seasonal items, the store is bursting with detail-focused clothing, wall art and other boutique merch. In the far right corner, French imports. On the left, Lundberg’s collection of artwork — her favorite spots in France, London and Chicago — line the wall.

And Mona Lisa is all about presenting those items with a side of customer service. The bright blue bags there are packed neatly by cashiers, who walk around the counter to present them with a friendly, “Have a good day.” It’s all just part of owning a store, according to Evans.

“I always wanted to open a boutique,” Evans said. “Retail has always interested me.”

And although Evans and Lundberg keep up with the buzz of fashion magazines and attend trend seminars, their merchandise mainly is based on customer interests.

“We started off buying what we liked, and then we realized, ‘Oh, nobody likes this stuff,’” Evans said with a laugh.

But then they “started to see what they were wearing when they walked in,” she explained.

“Our buying changes all the time,” she said.

In addition to complimentary gift wrapping, Mona Lisa hosts a decorating service — which Lundberg runs within the boutique — and offers a 10 percent discount on all cash purchases.And Evans and Lundberg are excited about the store in Orland Park, hoping to offer the same experience for customers as they did for years in Palos Heights.

It must be off to a good start, as Lundberg repeatedly expressed “how happy we are to be in Orland” when talking to The Orland Park Prairie.

https://www.opprairie.com/p/news-business/mona-lisa-owners-happy-be-orland-park