Jelleff's

Ghost Corp Apparel — resurrecting iconic corporate ghosts.

Jelleff’s was the public-facing name of Frank R. Jelleff, Inc., a Washington, D.C., women’s specialty retailer founded by Frank R. Jelleff in 1910. Its downtown flagship stood at 1214–1220 F Street NW, placing it squarely in the old F Street shopping district—where a proper outfit, a good hat, and an alarming amount of department-store confidence could be acquired in one stop.

The company sold women’s and misses’ apparel, shoes, accessories, and cosmetics, and grew beyond its Washington base with stores around the metropolitan area. A Shirlington, Virginia, branch opened in December 1947; later locations included Bethesda, Silver Spring, Falls Church, Springfield Mall, Tysons Corner, Connecticut Avenue in Washington, and Crystal City.

Frank R. Jelleff died in 1961. In March 1968, Jelleff Associates acquired the company from his widow, Margaret Gollan Jelleff; Alan L. Potter became president, while I. Lee Potter was associated with the new ownership. Downtown retail decline and difficult economics followed. The F Street flagship and Shirlington operation were closed in the early 1970s, with other stores subsequently wound down.

In May 1979, Jelleff’s announced a voluntary liquidation. The Connecticut Avenue and Springfield Mall stores closed that month, Silver Spring followed in June, and the Crystal City location continued independently under the name Fifteen Thirty Five. The shopping bags vanished, but the Washington retail memory stuck around like a perfectly preserved perfume counter.

Our Jelleff's collection celebrates that polished, mid-century Washington retail spirit: city-window glamour, suburban expansion, and the stubborn charm of a local store name that once meant you were dressed for the occasion.