Photo courtesy of the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce.
Elizabeth Adams, owner of Ex Voto Vintage, was honored as Retailer of the Year by the Alabama Retail Association.
Elizabeth Adams says she’s had “so many incredible, powerful women” as clients at Ex Voto Vintage, and she’s been grateful to be a little part of their story.
“I’ve had people who say they put on one of my jewelry pieces and walk out of the room and say they feel ready for a big presentation or a difficult negotiation, or whatever they might have that day,” Adams said. “It’s like what a power tie is for men — it makes you feel a little bit stronger, a little more supported. It might give you the extra courage and bravery you need.”
Adams knows what it’s like to need a little extra. In 2007, before Ex Voto Vintage was even a seed of an idea, her 3-year-old daughter was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in January, and passed away in November.
Adams’s world fell apart. But she kept moving.
“I survived this thing I thought was completely unsurvivable before I had to face it,” Adams said.
With a kindergartner and second grader in school every day, she knew she had to keep her hands busy. That started her on a journey that eventually led into something she would never have dreamed up: a thriving retail business built around her art.
And in September, Adams was named Alabama’s Bronze Retailer of the Year in the Annual Sales $1 Million to $5 Million category. Ex Voto is one of 11 businesses honored as 2023 Retailers of the Year by the Alabama Retail Association.
“Ex Voto combines timeless beauty with modern elegance, infused in both their jewelry and clothing selections,” said Emily Jensen, executive director of the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce, who nominated Adams for the award.
Adams said after her daughter died, she went back to painting, which she called her “creative therapy.”
“I started doing collage using pieces of broken jewelry,” she said, noting that she loved “tooling around” in Scott Antique Markets in Atlanta.
She also started creating little pendants for herself, and people began asking her where she got her jewelry pieces. So, she began to sell them too.
“They were all one of a kind, and it felt special and sentimental,” Adams said. “But I looked up one day and realized, ‘I think I’m a jewelry designer.’”
From there, it grew. She named her business after ex-votos, handmade gifts left at the church altar in response to an answered prayer. Then as she began meeting with more and more boutique owners in her home studio, she decided to open a showroom.
That showroom eventually became a shop. And as people began to call wanting the clothes the models were wearing while they showcased the jewelry, Ex Voto became a clothing boutique too.
“It’s just been this ever-evolving thing,” Adams said.
Mountain Brook is a great community to create something, to launch something. I’m so grateful for everything they’ve done.
Elizabeth Adams
And it’s grown. One of the reasons Adams received the Retailer of the Year award was her sales growth and her use of fashion merchandising interns from multiple colleges. She currently has three stores — one in Mountain Brook at 2416 Canterbury Road, one in Montgomery and one in Rosemary Beach, Florida.
She loves it, and she uses it to help others who are on the same road she’s walked. From the beginning, she’s given a portion of her sales to The Cure Starts Now Foundation for pediatric brain cancer research. Two years ago, she also started raising money for Lighthouse Ministries, which hosts restorative retreats for families going through pediatric cancer.
Adams said she’s grateful for the community’s support.
“Mountain Brook is a great community to create something, to launch something,” she said. “I’m so grateful for everything they’ve done.”
Ex Voto Vintage is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 205-538-7301, visit exvotovintage.com or follow them on Facebook or Instagram @exvotovintage.
