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Baby Gap won't do for Joaquin Venegas. This trendy tyke prefers the finer things in life, like locally made cotton diapers from Billie Blooms, jailhouse palazzo pants from Ultra Violet Kids, and biker-inspired overalls from Nununu. And boy, does he know how to wear it all. He's got his signature fashion pose down to a science, and he's only 2 years old.
Joaquin is the official mascot for The Milk House Shop, a by-appointment-only kids boutique in South Beach that carries artsy clothing, toy, and home brands for babies and up. "If you ask him where he works, he will say I work at the Milk House. And if you ask him what he does, he says I take pictures. He kind of enjoys that," says his mom, Monica Vasquez, a fashion designer from Colombia.
"When Joaquin was born it was really hard for me to find clothes for him. You know the brands– Gap, Carter's. They're not really fashionable clothes," she says. "He has his own attitude and personality, and it shows through his clothes."
She founded his Instagram account a year ago and it wasn't long before brands began clamoring to get coveted spots in his images. But instead of just accepting the free gear, Monica saw an opportunity. "I decided to start selling what he was wearing," she says, and so The Milk House Shop was born.
She carries no big, mass-produced brands; instead you can shop unique indie brands from around the world, from the states to Australia. Prices here range from $30 to $150 on average for clothing, and she sells to clients by appointment only, although you can make one for the same day. Funnily enough, her husband owns Artsee, one of Miami's top eyewear shops, so it's safe to say she has a bit of retail experience. Now, whether your kid can rock it like Joaquin, who his mom assures has the ultimate input in his wardrobe, is a different story.
"He'll give us a different pose for every picture, and he doesn't like to smile," says his mom. "He has like a signature pose, where opens his legs and looks... I don't know where he looks, but yeah. He knows what he's doing."