Roswitha Worms

Roswitha Worms loves what she does and recently celebrated 30 years of Kostenbader

She loves beautiful fabrics. She has a flair for trends. She knows how to dress. And: she has an unmistakable style. Roswitha Worms lives for fashion.

The fact that she lives in Lüdinghausen today is down to fate. In her younger years, she worked as a master tailor in Düsseldorf, had her own studio, a fashion school and organized fashion shows for the city's major houses. She came to Lüdinghausen in 1989 for love. She followed her husband Karl-Heinz Worms to the Steverstadt and traveled a lot with him.

"But I wanted to work in my profession and so I helped out in the afternoons at Mrs. Kostenbader's fashion store on Münsterstraße. My husband had brought one or two blouses to Düsseldorf for me. So I already knew the store. Mrs. Kostenbader was an institution. She was a woman with enormous charisma," recalls Roswitha Worms. "And when she fell seriously ill, she asked me if I would like to take over her business." Life has surprises in store. Naturally, Roswitha Worms took over the fashion business. "I'm passionate about fashion, I love and live what I do," she says. And she embodies this with every fiber.

Getting to know people

As we sit and chat in her store for the interview, she greets her customers as warmly as friends. Many have become just that over time. "I love working with people. I enjoy getting to know people more and more. The better I can advise them. I know what they like, what dresses them, what suits them." And because her customers appreciate exactly that, they keep coming back. Not just from Lüdinghausen, but from the Münsterland region, the Ruhr area, even from Hamburg or Berlin.

Roswitha Worms recently celebrated 30 years at Kostenbader. She herself has been with the company for 24 years - initially on Münsterstraße and since 1994 on the market, and almost all of her employees have been with the company for at least 15 years or more. "I'm delighted that they've been loyal to me for so long. We're a great team," says Roswitha Worms. And: "My ladies are fashion consultants, not sales assistants."

The Kostenbader fashion experts even visit customers at home if necessary, organize their wardrobe, discuss which clothes can be combined, take photos and label these clothes accordingly. "The customers then get a lot of positive feedback about their wardrobe. And we get a lot of positive feedback from our customers," says Roswitha Worms. "It's just fun." She also opens her fashion store in the evening if a customer doesn't have time otherwise. "Then we have a glass of Prosecco together and chat. That's a matter of course for me. That's service," says Roswitha Worms.

Own signature

Over the years, she has developed her very own style, her own signature. Her absolute favorite designer is Annette Görtz. "Annette Görtz has a knack for perfect cuts and details," says Roswitha Worms. And what she sells in her store at the market also has her unmistakable style. When you see women on the street, you know immediately: this is Kostenbader.

When Roswitha Worms shops for the new season, she first looks at the shows in Milan or Paris: what are the big names doing? She looks at her designers' new collections in Düsseldorf and Berlin and orders what she likes. In addition to the designers she has been working with for years, she surprises her customers with new names every season. "The manufacturers have to fit together. It's the mix that makes the difference," says the fashion expert.

Roswitha Worms is far from thinking about quitting. "As long as I'm still passionate about what I do, I'll keep going. And as long as there is a certain lightness to it." Nadine Wenge