About Us

Ad Lib is about clothing for real women in the real world. Women who value comfort as much as style. Women who want to feel as good as they look. Women who need to be practical but are still playful. Women who are as young as they feel. Women who want to look as individual as each of us is. Women just like you... Ad Lib it!

When Anna Sagel first settled in Boone, NC, back in the 1980s, she wasn’t quite sure how she was going to make a living. Fresh off the water where she’d worked as cook on sailboats in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, all she knew was she wanted to find a way to stay in these magical mountains. She decided to “ad-lib” it and her story is truly one of adventure.

A lifelong world traveler who grew up in Spain, Belgium and England, was trilingual by the age of 10, and later lived in Costa Rica and traveled much of Central America, Anna had a hunch that the colorful, handmade Guatemalan goods she’d seen on her travels would be a hit with the students at Appalachian State University. So with $1,000 savings in her pocket, she made the trip to South America and loaded up. Within six months, Anna had made as many trips, and she knew she was onto something.

Over the years, Ad-Lib’s look has evolved to reflect Anna’s international style and dynamic personality. The boutique has become known far and wide for its unique and varied selection of women’s clothing, jewelry and accessories and now Anna is the proud owner of one of Asheville’s best-known women’s boutiques.

Anna is quick to point out that Ad-Lib’s success is due in large part to her great employees. Ad-Lib is all about customer service, and women both appreciate and come back regularly for the personal attention and help they know they will always get there.