All That Jas: Main Street’s One and Only Clothing Store
As soon as the clock hit 11 a.m on January 31—the Monday after Bid Day—Michaelle Graybeal was opening the doors of All That Jas, ready to welcome in the hundreds of new sorority members that were antsy for a sweatshirt rocking their newfound Greek letters.
“It’s like our Christmastime,” Graybeal says.
She pointed them to one of the nine sorority sections lining the walls, always sure to congratulate them on becoming a sister. Graybeal has been following this same routine for the past nineteen years since she first opened her shop in 2003.
All That Jas started out serving the cheer and dance world, traveling up and down the east coast selling uniforms and t-shirts at large competitions. But in 2001, one of Graybeal’s employees—an Elon student—mentioned that the merchandise they were selling at these competitions was very similar to the items she was looking for in sorority events like Bid Day and Big Little Week. So they decided to give the Elon market a try.
After a couple of years spent in two different locations in the area, All That Jas moved to its current location on Main Street, walking distance from nearly all of campus. What started as a traveling shop has become an Elon staple, where students can purchase sorority gear, vintage Elon College sweatshirts, or any birthday presents from keychains to tumblers.
However, the shop is not just a staple for Elon students. Graybeal travels to multiple universities each year to put on trunk shows, where students in different sororities can purchase All That Jas merchandise. Just last weekend she hosted five trunk shows at High Point University. These trunk shows can also be hosted virtually—meaning that the reach of the store can extend throughout the country.
To prepare for rush each year, All That Jas ramps up the amount of sorority merchandise they have available. This year, they implemented a grab-and-go section where girls can grab something off the rack that will be made for them before they leave the store.
“That gives girls that instant gratification,” Graybeal says. “We have really pushed grab-and-go this year, and it’s worked very, very well.”
Aside from the distinct sorority and grab-and-go sections, the store also offers a lookbook that allows customers to print any design they want onto any piece of clothing the store owns. Graybeal finds inspiration for these designs by using ideas from social media and from the many Elon students that work at All That Jas in order to offer items that are trending for college kids at the moment.
Products are also selected at a merchandise market that the staff of the store attends twice a year in Atlanta. The goal is that these products will lead to Graybeal’s favorite part of working at All That Jas.
“I love to see the excitement of the girls,” Graybeal says. “They will come in and say ‘Oh my gosh, I love that and I have got to have it.’”
Now, more than a week post-Bid Day, the after-recruitment frenzy is still happening and the Big Little Week rush is beginning. Although this time of year is especially exciting for the store due to Greek life, the most challenging part of running this business for Graybeal is when people never once stop in during their four years at Elon. All That Jas may specialize in Greek apparel, but they strive to offer gifts to excite everyone.
“We’re not just a Greek life store,” Graybeal says. “We have so much more to offer.”