Shop Localista: Nicole's Travel on Irvington Avenue

When you first walk into this Nicole's Travel, nestled under a striped green awning on Irvington Avenue, you may be a bit bewildered by the assortment that greets your gaze. Bold-styled signature necklaces, earring and bags vie for viewing space with sleek, modern evening bags and light, lanky pieces. Bohemian and artisan go head to head with gild and glitter- oh, and then there are the travel posters; Caribbean, European and Continental excursions call out for your attention from all four walls for as well.

When you sit down with owner Alfreda Broughton, however, the memorable mixture makes perfect sense. Long before she became a travel agent Alfreda studied flat pattern design at FIT, followed with a stint in retail. It was only after she started working in the travel department at NJ Transit that she discovered her talent for booking destination vacations, which she really sees as a continuation of her interest in the beautiful and attention worthy.

For over fourteen years, Alfreda has successfully stayed afloat in a competitive industry, even with the heavy onslaught of internet competition and economic woes by focusing on making each and every trip booked with her memorable for all the right reasons. "Anywhere I send a person, I know, and I know well," she states with pride. "People come to me with all sort of requests and budgets, but they always leave pleasantly surprised with the price point. The best compliment I get is when they come back and tell me it was even better than they'd hoped it would be."

And Alfreda isn't fazed by the discount travel booking sites, either, "People don't realize how expensive trying to book an inexpensive vacation on their own can be," she says with a knowing shake of her head. Her specialty is destination wedding and large group travel, which both require the attention to detail for which she is sought after.

She brings the same appreciation for value and eye to detail to her accessory business, too, "God gave me a good eye to pick out great things," she says with absolute sincerity. And great things they are; you'll see some of the exact same items at this Irvington Avenue location that you'll find at a certain swanky Short Hill shop, only for less than a quarter of the price. "People usually ask me if the pieces are handmade," says Alfreda. "And they're always amazed at the prices." Most of the items run about $40, with most bags falling in the $20 - $65 range.

"Every single item is handpicked by my daughter or me," she says. That daughter, Charisse Nicole,  being the person the travel agency is named after the one who happens to also be Alfreda's business partner in 'Ree's Control Room', their jewel and handbag company.

If you've never popped into 311 Irvington Avenue, why not treat yourself to a new shopping adventure? Who knows, in addition to picking up some fabulous new accessories you just might walk out with some creative ideas about your next destination vacation- all at prices that will pleasantly surprise. Here's some added incentive, too- just mention this Patch article and Alfreda will give you a 20% discount on a limited selection of bags- some perfectly sized for stylishly carrying on those extra travel items!

Nicole's Travel, Inc. 311 Irvington Avenue, South Orange 973-763-9975