Debi Greenberg: Fearless Fashion Firecracker

Debi Greenberg is regarded as one of the most important people in the world of American fashion retail. This, is in spite of the fact that she is the fourth generation owner-operator of Louis, a fashion house that began as a pawn shop in a city not known for its sharp dressers.

In the first version of Louis, Greenberg's great grandfather Louis Pearlstein used to buy up Italian suits imported on the backs of immigrants, refurbish and resell them. By the time Debi took over in the early '90s, it was a posh outlet for serious couture — Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Prada.

After seeing those same labels pop up in malls and airports, Geenberg decided to make Louis more unique, scouring Europe for things Bostonians couldn't get anywhere else. She garnered a national reputation.

Then, last year, she did something a lot of people said was crazy — she left Newbury Street and re-opened Louis in a temporary building on the South Boston waterfront.

We pay Greenberg a visit and try on a suit jacket or two.

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