(Credit: Steve Thurston, 2022)
A Riggi dress in the window of Saratoga Trunk.
Over 220 gowns. More than 82 hats. And any number of jumpers.
They are lightly worn, or were never worn at all. They are pre-owned, but the sales tag might still be on them.
And they are all from the closet of Michele Riggi, and for sale at Saratoga Trunk on Broadway in Saratoga Springs.
The millionaire philanthropist, “iconic fashionista” and recent widow of Ronald Riggi, who has sold her Italian-style mansion “Palazzo Riggi” on north Broadway, told the owner of Saratoga Trunk that she had to get out of town. She has reportedly decamped to her vast complex near Lake Placid. Called “Casa del Paradiso,” it is also for sale.
“Natalie, I’m embarking on a new life. I want to sell all of my gowns. If I need a new one, I’ll buy it,” said Natalie Sillery, the owner of the upscale women's fashion store Saratoga Trunk. She was recalling the conversation she had with her friend Michele. They have known each other for about 28 years.
And so the clothes came in. And in.
The hats came in boxes, wrapped in special paper, Sillery said. The gowns, zippered in garment bags, came in a variety of styles, designers, colors and sizes. The gowns take up racks in the Trunk’s back room.
“They’re in better condition than what you can buy in a department store,” Sillery said.
Riggi owned Don O’Neill, Badgley Mishchka, Giovanni, Kay Unger and others.
Some of the gowns are one-of-a-kind, and some of the designers then placed elements of the Riggi gown into their full line, Sillery said.
Since good taste never goes out-of-style, people have been coming, trying and buying.
“People are excited to get dressed up again,” she said.
The store normally carries new, designer fashion.
"This is just a special kind of favor, just something different," Sillery said of the sale.
Both women are known in Saratoga Springs for their philanthropic work. Both have held seats on foundation boards and hold fundraising events. Sillery said the sales are little bit consignment for Ms. Riggi and a little bit fundraiser.
"It's a little bit of both," she said.
Ronald Riggi made his family fortune with the company Turbine Services that he started with his brother Vince in 1972. The mansion on Broadway with an interior courtyard and bowling-green-smooth grass sold and closed quickly. Ronald Riggi died mid-August and the house was under contract by late October.
Sillery said she is happy for Riggi to have a new adventure, adding, “I wish her all the best.”
The Albany Business Journal covered the death of Ronald Riggi and the Lake Placid property. The Times Union had the sale of Palazzo Riggi.