Street Style: Meet Lisa Katic
Somebody once asked me, “What would you do if money didn’t matter? I blurted out, ‘own a winery!’” says Lisa Katic. “I kinda stopped myself and thought ‘what was that?’ It was always brewing. I sat with it and thought about it for a while. I can’t own a winery, I’m in D.C. and don’t have the resources. But there might be something else in that space.”
Originally from Pittsburgh, “where the bridges are painted yellow,” Lisa began her career in nutrition and dietetics. That path brought her to D.C., doing communications and policy work for small organizations. But she always had the entrepreneurial bug, and eventually launched her own consulting business and moved to Alexandria. Being more in control of her schedule, she began to also work part time in the retail wine space. “I thought I’ll just check it out and I’ll be there for a year…that turned into five years. I loved it and I learned.”
Lisa has always had a love for hospitality. “I put myself through college by working at bars, restaurants, country clubs, that type of thing. It’s just a skillset that once you have it, you always have it. I wanted to get full time into the wine and food space. I read about it, I was the go-to person in all my circles if anyone had questions about wine. And once I stopped working around the clock and traveling so much, I shifted my focus.”
Her vision then became a reality. “I heard about a gentleman who was going to sell his wine shop, and thought, “I’m ready.” In 2017, she took over his space on 108 N. Patrick Street, and opened Wine Gallery 108. “I made it work, I turned the space from something that had become shabby over time into something chic.”
Her other creative outlet? Painting. After a pretty unnerving experience with vertigo when she was “perfectly young and healthy,” she was forced to take a step back and focus more on herself, and meditation. “We run…and we run from everything. It made me sit with a lot of stuff. Vertigo is a weird phenomenon…I experienced it on and off for over a year, and when I got better, I had this physical urge to paint, an urge to create. I started asking people that were artists– ‘has this happened to you, what did you do?’”
She shares she doesn’t consider herself an artist. “I don’t draw things, but I had a real creative part of me waiting to be explored. I went and bought the starter kit–acrylic paints, brushes and tools–and I could not wait to get home. I just started playing around with it like a child. I couldn't stop. It’s like when you’re binging and you have to watch the next episode. I was experimenting. I kept getting canvases and they were getting bigger and bigger. And my friends would say ‘what is that? Is that for sale?’ And I had just painted it last night. I was painting as my own outlet…next thing I know I was selling paintings like crazy.”
It was an avenue for her to explore, and it all led to now. “I have physical space where I can bring these things together: my food, my wine and my art.” As for the name, Wine Gallery 108, she says, “from the very beginning, I wanted to include art in the business.”
She moved from 108 N. Patrick Street to 108 N. Saint Asaph Street in September of 2022. “People often ask ‘how did you do that?’ I didn’t. I don’t have that kind of power. It was the forces of the universe…it was meant to me,” she says of the 108 in her new address. She moved the whole business and opened it in three days, packing all the wine herself and directing the movers box by box. They worked round the clock.
Upstairs, she has an event space and Nepenthe Gallery, located in Mt. Vernon has also had a popup space there since July. This past fall she unveiled WineLab 108, an interactive, wine education workshop, “where you get to know your palette and what’s in your glass, it’s very personal.”
She also has a wine club with two levels (Pioneer and Artisanal), pickup parties and winemaker tastings. “I love to tell the stories of our winemakers, people aren’t only supporting me, but supporting boutique wineries and distributors all along the supply chain. I created WineLab to help customers understand why these wines are different…the way they’re made, handcrafted, the way the vines are cultivated. There are no additives. This is why the taste is the same in every bottle. My customers always say, ‘I don’t get headaches’…and that’s a great thing to hear.”
For her travel bucket List: “Champagne. I can’t believe I haven’t been there. I have been all over France, but not there yet.” Well the way Lisa visualizes things, it’s bound to happen in the near future. Check out her stunning Street Style:
ABOUT LISA
Neighborhood: Braddock Road in Old Town
What is your hometown? Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
What would surprise people about you? I'm a fairly introverted person in spite of my ability to talk to almost anyone.
Favorite book or movie: The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck stuck with me and Cleopatra with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton is epic.
Guilty Pleasure: Curling up with a riveting book for hours and hours.
Latest binge-watch: Wayne Shorter - Zero Gravity
Bucket list travel destination: Champagne region of France.
STYLE
Define your style in three words or less: Relaxed, sometimes Bohemian, classic.
The go-to piece in your wardrobe: The leather jacket I am wearing for this feature, and when I’m home, a tattered 30-year-old sweatshirt I can't let go of.
Favorite trend: I don't follow trends so much as I can’t usually keep up.
Beauty product you can’t live without: Great lightweight facial moisturizer, cream moisturizer for my hair.
Boots, sneakers, or sandals? All three.
WELLNESS
Go-to way to de-stress: Puttering in my garden, riding my bike or meditating.
Most fun way to stay active: Riding a bike, walking, hiking in nature.
Wellness goal: I used to swim competitively and I dream of training in the pool again someday. The movie Nyad really tugged at me.
Want to try: Aerial yoga.
Proudest wellness achievement: Maintaining a fairly healthy diet and exercise routine throughout my life. As a registered dietitian, we know it is the day-to-day consistency that really counts.
HOME
Favorite room in your home: My rooftop deck, art studio and kitchen.
Antiques, modern, or a mix? Modern with an eclectic mix.
Last item bought for your home: Plants for my roof deck.
Favorite way to entertain: Casual grazing with friends.
Clutter-free or well-lived in? Clutter-free.
Next planned purchase: A condo or property. Joking not joking.
ALEXANDRIA
What do you love about Alexandria Stylebook? I learn so much about other business owners and leaders in our city.
Favorite spot in Alexandria: Probably walking along the waterfront or cycling on Mt. Vernon trail.
Your go-to shop: I barely shop but just got to visit the ladies at Vida Style. I was so impressed!
Best food spot: The nutrition geek in me loves Zen Press, and Thompson Italian and A La Lucia are always on my list.
Favorite local organization: Together We Bake is top of mind.
Annual Alexandria event you most look forward to: Well the Scottish Christmas Walk rolls right past my shop so it’s exciting to have front row seats to all the action. It really gets us in the spirit.
