Jennifer Berg

If you're headed anywhere beyond Indiana this spring, chances are you've done a little research. You've packed your traveler's checks, your sunscreen and (if "hip" just isn't your thing) your cheery red fanny pack. You board the plane with that little pre-travel buzz, but soon realize that the hours that stretch between you and mojitos on the beach are enough to morph merry anticipation into the kind of anguish where cramped legs, horrific seatmates and parched skin prevail. It's time to change your trip-planning regime, folks, and Flight 001 is here to help.

The boutique was dreamed up in 1998 by John Sencion and Brad John, two frequent travelers then working in the garment industry. The weary jet-setters dreamed of a one-stop shop that would "make travel shopping as streamlined as flight itself." Referencing the days when flying was more glamorous than godawful, the men named the store after Pan Am's 1942 round-the-world flight (that'd be Flight 001, pronounced "flight one") and opened the first shop in New York City. Locations in San Francisco and Los Angeles soon lifted off; in early May Chicago's Flight 001 landed at 1131 North Rush.

The Gold Coast boutique, designed to look like an airplane cabin, is stocked with enough ease-the-flying-time fare to make a plane ride to Bali endurable. Tried-and-true carryon stuffers include prettily printed sleeping masks, an array of hip travel books and spruced up iPod covers. A beyond-the-basics assortment of goods includes fixers for any unanticipated disaster that can pop up miles above solid ground: There are cloths designed to take out nasty deodorant stains, portable salt-and-pepper shakers to spice up the ole airplane cuisine and the hilariously risqué Mile High Kit, complete with, well, use your imagination. Flight 001 exclusives include a series of bags called the Spacepak, ranging in price from $28-$65. Designed for ultimate convenience (aren't all good travel accessories?) the bags come with one side for clean clothing and another for the garments' sordid counterparts. There are bags specifically designed for lingerie, women's and men's shoes, and a clothing bag that uses maximum compression to ensure mucho room.

(2006-05-16)

Also by Jennifer Berg

Runaway Runway
The Nova Art Fair, now in its sophomore year, shines a spotlight on some of Chicago's up-and-coming talent. This weekend, the city's freshest art will be plucked from an array of galleries and displayed throughout Lakeview's City Suites Hotel at 933 West Belmont
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By Design
As high-school students, Kelly Whitesell and Elizabeth Del Castillo bonded over thimbles and thread. Before long, the two were sewing side-by-side at New York's prestigious FIT, then sashaying into mega-fashionable jobs: After graduation, Kelly became a design assistant for the ever-so-chic label Mayle while Elizabeth worked in fabrics and production at Spiegel. In spring of 2005, the girls returned to Chicago to open Eskell (953 West Webster); the Lincoln Park boutique quickly became famous for one-of-a-kind fashions
(2006-04-18)

Open for Business
Big-time Big-Apple based Scoop was created in 1996 by Stefani Greenfield and Uzi Ben Abraham. The first boutique, opened in (where else?) Soho, was meant to simulate the "Ultimate Closet," stocked with what Greenfield deems "the best of the best in fashion, all under one roof"
(2006-04-04)

Open for Business
Expect a healing buffet that includes something to soothe any ailment
(2006-03-28)

Studded Studs
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Open for Business
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Open for Business
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Open for Business
(2005-11-08)

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